Islamist Terrorists Target Oil Tanker Again

Moscow Metro Bombings: Russia Should Reinvent How it Handles Terrorism

Look Who’s Talking Exclusive: Middle East and Terrorism Experts Comment on the Situation in Yemen

Excerpt from a blog By Marianna Gurtovnik

I have asked recognized experts on Middle East and terrorism to comment on the current situation in Yemen, which I covered last week, and to share their views regarding the U.S. policy in that country and the nations surrounding it.

What does Iran’s new satellite-launching capability mean?

Iran marked the 30th anniversary of the Islamic Revolution with a successful launch of its first indigenous satellite on Feb. 2. The Omid -- "Hope" in Farsi -- satellite was launched via the Iranian-produced satellite carrier Safir-2 -- translated as Ambassador-2.

According to the Iranian Space Agency, the Safir-2 weighs 26 tons, is 22 meters long, 1.25 meters in diameter and can carry a satellite 155 miles into space. Documentation for this can be found at armscontrolwonk.com/file_download/153/Wright_Safir_Analysis_February_11.pdf.

Iran’s ICBM program presents real threat to U.S. in near future

The Islamic Republic of Iran produces several short-range rockets domestically, including the Shahab-1 and the Shahab-2. They are spin-offs respectively of the Soviet-built Scud-B and Scud-C. It also produces a 1,300 kilometer-range -- 780 miles -- single-stage liquid-fueled ballistic missile Shahab-3 that is a spin-off of North Korea’s relatively reliable No-dong intermediate-range ballistic missile. Details of these systems can be found at nti.org/e_research/profiles/Iran/index.html.

Iran remains committed to developing a long-range ICBM that can extend Tehran’s military reach to Europe and the United States. The Middle East, Europe and even the Eastern Seaboard of the United States may find themselves within range of Iranian nuclear missiles in the next three to five years or less.

The Real World: Sand is Running Out of Israel-Iran Clock

In March 2009, Russia will deploy modern S-300 long-range anti-aircraft missiles in Iran. By June 2009 they will become fully operational, as Iranian teams finish training provided by their Russian instructors, a high-level Russian source who requested anonymity told the Middle East Times.

According to multiple sources, Iran is likely to produce a nuclear bomb soon, and, given the blood curdling rhetoric of its President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, may use it against Israel.

The Real World: Iran - North Korea with Oil?

Amidst chilling rhetoric reminiscent of Europe of the 1930s, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has promised to give the West a “bloody nose” and “smash it on the mouth.” The threats came as Ahmadinejad announced that an additional 6,000 centrifuges will be deployed in clusters called “cascades” in the nuclear research city of Natanz. These will be in addition to the existing 3,000 Pakistan-designed centrifuges already there.

The Real World: Iran’s Managed Democracy

Iranian voters – 44 million of them – cast their ballots on March 14, in the country’s eighth parliamentary election since the Islamic Revolution of 1979. Surprisingly, many in the media and in the "chattering classes" still view Iran as a democracy, albeit of an "Islamic" type.

In reality, Iran has a political process about as "democratic" as the Soviet Union used to have, or as communist regimes around the world, from Cuba to North Korea still maintain. Certainly, politics are involved, in the sense of struggles for power between factions and individuals. However, Iran’s latest round of elections was hardly democratic by any stretch of the imagination.

Velayat-e-Faghih, the rule of the cleric, has outlived its natural life span. Even if the next U.S. administration deals with Tehran with its nuclear program and support of terrorism, it should clearly recognize the regime for what it is: a dictatorship, not a democracy. In the Iranian future, there is an open ballot box, and the last vote of the Iranian people has yet to be cast. The longer Iran’s path to democracy is, the higher price its people will pay in the end.