'Israel' concerned over Iran satellite launcher test-launch

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The Israeli occupation is highly concerned about Iran's ballistic missile capabilities, Israeli media said on Saturday in the wake of the Islamic Revolution Guard Corps (IRGC) Aerospace Force successfully conducting a test launch of the Ghaem 100 satellite carrier into earth's sub-orbit.

The Ghaem 100 is a three-stage satellite launcher that uses solid fuel. It is capable of launching 80 kg satellites into orbit at an altitude of 500 kilometers from the earth's surface.

Israeli Channel 12 news anchor Dana Weiss saw that Iran launching a rocket carrying a satellite is an additional sign of its growing ballistic missile capabilities.

"Naturally, in Israel, they are very concerned about these developments," she said.

It will take a few days "to know whether this satellite will remain in orbit and to know its capabilities," Israeli Channel 12 military correspondent Nir Dvori said. "Whoever launches such missiles into space can turn them into intercontinental ballistic missiles, and this Iranian show of power is being closely watched in Israel."

"This triangle, Iran, Russia, and Israel, has been getting hotter lately, and Israel is gravely concerned about what the Russians will end up giving to Iran. Maybe there is something related to the nuclear deal or the freedom of operation of the Israeli air force in Syria, and maybe both these things together," Dvori added.

Meanwhile, a report by Israeli broadcaster KAN said that the IRGC test launch is a "clear threat to Israel from Tehran," noting that behind the scenes, the Ukraine war was "starting to be used as an arena for Israel and Iran to clash."

The IRGC Aerospace Force launched Noor-2, another indigenously made satellite, using the domestically-built three-stage rocket propelled by a mix of solid and liquid fuels launcher Qassed (messenger) on March 8, 2022, and it is orbiting Earth at an altitude of 500 km.

Noor-2 was launched for reconnaissance, and it went into orbit 480 seconds after launch at a speed of 6.7 km/s.

Likewise, the launch vehicle has three stages, two of which use solid fuel and one of which uses liquid fuel. It was designed to launch satellites into orbit and was tested for the first time in February 2021.

This is not only a major step toward boosting the country's military capabilities, but it is a manifestation of Iran's efforts in combatting the unilateral sanctions imposed by the US after it withdrew from the nuclear deal aimed at reducing Tehran's nuclear activity and offering the Islamic Republic sanction relief.

Iran began its space program in the early 2000s, building its own satellite launcher on the Shahab-4 surface-to-air missile. The Semnan launch pad in the country's north was built in 2009.

Due to high costs, Iran's space program was suspended between 2015 and 2017. Two civilian test launches failed in 2019, but the Iranian military successfully launched two satellites into orbit in 2020 and March 2022.

Later on, the head of the Iranian Space Agency said his country was continuing the production of indigenous satellites, with plans to launch in March 2023 seven homegrown satellites.

The spacecraft planned to launch in 2023 include the Iranian Nahid, Pars-1, and Zafar satellites, which Tehran already has in its arsenal. The remaining four are still under construction.

The satellite series of Nahid, Pars-1, and Zafar are up there as the most modern Iranian spacecraft. They were designed for telecommunication purposes and for measuring radiation in space.

'Russia-Iran drone axis' a power to be reckoned with: Israeli media

In parallel to reports about Russia using Iranian drones in Ukraine, which also gave rise to many fears within the occupation, an Israeli West Asia affairs analyst Seth Frantzman wrote in The Jerusalem Post that Russia is increasingly using Iranian drones in Ukraine, which is a threat that "must be taken seriously" in the international arena, not only in the countries' respective regions.

According to Frantzman, Iran has been exporting either pieces or blueprints of drones to its regional allies, such as Ansar Allah in Yemen, Hezbollah in Lebanon, and Hamas in occupied Palestine. What is notable, however, is that the UAVs are now much more sophisticated than they used to be, with longer ranges and higher precision.

The main point of concern for the Israeli analyst is the fact that Iran is growing to be a lot bigger than its own sphere of influence within West Asia, extending to Europe, namely Russia.

Russia's usage of loitering munition drones developed by Iran against Ukraine is showing the might of the Iranian UAV capabilities.

Reportedly, Russia is chiefly using the Shahed-136/Geran-2 type kamikaze drone against Ukraine, with many reports surfacing about the matter in recent days. According to Frantzman, for all anyone knows, Russia could have ordered thousands of the drones, or could even be manufacturing them locally.