PHOTO: Iran’s testing of a ballistic missile, March 2016


Iran has conducted its first ballistic missile test since July, according to US and Israeli officials.

The officials told journalists on Monday that the missile traveled about 600 miles, with its re-entry vehicle exploding before the flight was complete. It is unclear whether that was an accidental or deliberate detonation, they said.

The Iranian regime has made no statement about the claims.

Israel’s Ambassador to the UN, Danny Danon, accused Iran of violating a Security Council resolution passed in July 2015 at the time of the nuclear deal between Tehran and the 5+1 Powers.

At the White House on Monday, Press Secretary Sean Spicer acknowledged that the missile launch had taken place but offered no indication of a response, “We’re aware that Iran fired that missile,” he said. “We’re looking into the exact nature of it.”

During his campaign, Donald Trump said he would “tear up” the nuclear deal. However, he has not repeated the line after becoming President, and his Defense Secretary James Mattis has warned against abandoning the accord.

Occasional Tests Since Nuclear Agreement

The July 2015 resolution, adopted after a compromise between the 5+1 — including US Secretary of State John Kerry — “called upon [Iran] not to undertake any activity related to ballistic missiles designed to be capable of delivering nuclear weapons, including launches using such ballistic missile technology”.

Iran subsequently tested missiles, including in March 2016, weeks after implementation of the nuclear deal. However, Tehran said it is not violating the UN resolution because the missiles are not capable of delivering nuclear warheads.

When Iran tested another missile in late April, with a range of 2,000 km (1,240 miles) and reportedly landing within 8 meters of its target, Defense Minister Hossein Dehghan said, “We have never pursued an invasive view and what we are doing is upgrading our country’s defensive capability. Security and development of the region are intertwined and our defense might guarantees this issue.”

Tehran also defied statements by UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon and German Chancellor Angela Merkel in July. Mohsen Rezaei, the Secretary of the Expediency Council, responded, “The defensive Iranian missile tests are not inconsistent with the security and peace of the region. The missiles and bombs of the Zionist regime and Saudi Arabia are.”

See Iran Daily, May 10: Tehran — We Won’t Stop Ballistic Missile Tests
Iran Daily, July 9: Tehran Challenges UN Criticism of Ballistic Missile Tests