Iran vows to use 2,000lb smart bomb against ‘enemies’

IRAN vowed yesterday to use a new 2,000lb “smart” bomb against its enemies and unveiled mass production of the new weapon, state television reported.

Tehran announced development of the long-range guided bomb on Thursday, saying that it could be deployed by the country’s aging US-made F-4 and F-5 fighter jets.

“We will use these (bombs) against our enemies when the time comes,” Defence Minister Mostafa Mohammad Najjar said on state television yesterday.

“This will be used against our enemies, and against those who violate our land and air space.”

Emanuel Winston, a Middle East analyst at the US-based Freeman Centre for Strategic Studies, said Thursday that Iran’s smart bomb claim sounded “plausible” but cautioned that missile development would be more dangerous given the limited range of the country’s aircraft.

Mr Najjar was more aggressive, saying that the bomb “remarkably increases Iran’s defence capabilities”.

Tehran often announces new weapons for its arsenal, but the US maintains that while the Islamic republic has made some strides, many of these statements are exaggerations.

Iran launched its own arms development program during its 1980-88 war with Iraq in response to a US-led arms embargo.

Since 1992, the country has produced its own tanks, armoured personnel carriers, and missiles.

Earlier this month, Iran said it had started industrial-scale production of its own fighter jet, known as Azarakhsh or Lightning, to upgrade its elderly air force, much of which dates from before the 1979 revolution.

Iran last year test-fired an “ultra-horizon” missile, two powerful torpedoes and a Fajr-e Darya missile capable of avoiding radars and hitting several targets simultaneously using multiple warheads during large military manoeuvre’s in the Persian Gulf.