Leader says war unlikely but urges boosting Iran’s defenses
Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei on Sunday said war is unlikely but called on Iran’s Armed Forces to boost their defense capabilities amid increased tension with the United States. “Based on political calculations, there is no likelihood of a military war, but the armed forces must be vigilant ... and upgrade their personnel and equipment capacities,” Ayatollah Khamenei said in a meeting with commanders and officials of Iranian Army’s Air Defense Base in Tehran, which was held to mark Iran’s Air Defense Day.
Stressing the importance of increasing preparedness and capabilities of the Air Defense Base and its staff, he said that the Army’s Air Defense Base is a very sensitive part of the Armed Forces, which is on the frontline of the confrontation with Iran’s enemies.
Ayatollah Khamenei added that every step that is taken to boost the preparedness of Iran’s Armed Forces amounts to an act of worship before the Almighty God.
During the meeting, the new commander of Iranian Army’s Khatam al-anbiya Air Defense Base, Brigadier General Alireza Sabahifard, presented a report on the base’s measures and future plans.
On Saturday, Iran announced plans to boost its ballistic and cruise missile capacity and acquire modern fighter planes and submarines to boost its defenses following the US pullout from Tehran’s nuclear agreement with world powers.
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said last month the Islamic Republic’s military prowess was what deterred Washington from attacking it.
Reuters and Press TV contributed to this story. Human Rights Watch (HRW) called for an end to all weapons sales to Saudi Arabia following the bombing of a school bus last month that killed 51 people, including 40 children. The rights group called the attack an apparent war crime and said it places arms suppliers at “risk of complicity in war crimes”.
HRW’S statement, released on Sunday, came just hours after A Saudi-led coalition said admitted the bombing was “unjustified”.
A probe, conducted by the Saudi-led coalition, concluded on Saturday that “mistakes” were made in the August 9 air raid in Sa’ada Province. The coalition, which initially defended the bombing saying it hit a “legitimate military target”, has now pledged to hold to account those responsible for the attack. The attack sparked a wave of international anger and calls by the United Nations Security Council for a “credible and transparent” investigation.
HRW said it received photographs and videos of munition fragments that a lawyer based in Sana’a.
Markings visible on photos and videos of one of the remnants – a guidance fin for a GBU-12 Paveway II bomb, an aerial laser-guided bomb – show it was produced by Pentagon’s top weapons supplier Lockheed Martin, according to the rights group.
“Countries with knowledge of this record that are supplying more bombs to the Saudis will be complicit in future deadly attacks on civilians,” said Bill Van Esveld, senior children’s rights researcher at HRW.
HRW said it has identified Us-origin munitions at the sites of at least 24 other coalition attacks in Yemen.
The UK and France remain major arms sellers to Saudi Arabia, HRW said. Germany and Norway have suspended arms sales to the Kingdom, while the Netherlands and Sweden have limited weapons sales. The devastating war has since left nearly 15,000 people dead and sparked what the UN has described as the world’s worst humanitarian crisis.
Al Jazeera and AFP contributed to this story.