🇮🇷🛰 Iran developing satellite and space rocket technologies full throttle

Iran is about to launch its new Kowsar and Hodhod satellites, Iranian Space Agency (ISA) head Hossein Salariyeh stated on July 3. Several other spacecraft are slated for launch this year while a whopping 30 satellites are in the design and development stages, the ISA said.

Sputnik looked into the achievements, history and prospects of the Iranian space program.

▪️ In January, the Sorayya research satellite was launched into a space orbit of 750 km above the Earth’s surface.

▪️ In June, four new satellites were unveiled: The Tolou-3 high-resolution observation satellite, the Nahid-2 telecommunications satellite, the Kowsar sensing satellite and the Hodhod research satellite.

▪️ Early next year Iran is planning to inaugurate West Asia’s biggest spaceport – the Chabahar Space Center. Covering an area of 14,000 hectares, it will serve as Iran's primary hub for space missions.

Iran's interest in space exploration traces back to the middle of the 20th century. In 1998 Tehran signed agreements with Russia and China on space collaboration, while in 2009 Iran's domestic launcher Safir delivered the nation's first research and communications satellite Omid into orbit.

▪️ In 2013 Iran successfully launched two rockets carrying monkeys 120 km above the earth's surface. The missions lasted around 15 minutes, news agency IRNA reported.

▪️ Having temporarily suspended its space program in 2015, Iran successfully delivered its first military satellite, Nur-1, into an orbit of 425 km using the Qased rocket in 2020. Nur-2 was launched two years later into a 450-km orbit by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Aerospace Force.

▪️ In October 2023, Iran started the development the Sarir rocket to deliver satellites into geostationary orbit at an altitude of 35,786 km. The same year the IRGC launched its third military satellite Nur-3.

▪️ Late President Ebrahim Raisi reinvigorated Iran's space program, which saw over a dozen successful launches between 2021 and 2023.

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❗️ Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov's latest statements:

◾️ Putin and Xi discussed China’s plans to hold summit on Ukraine

◾️ Erdogan cannot be mediator between Russia and Ukraine, since the latter rejects any talks

◾️ Russia is sure that someone in West has considered Russia’s proposal on peace in Ukraine

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Scott Ritter: Israel will likely lose in war with Hezbollah

Former UN weapons inspector Scott Ritter commented on the balance of powers in case of military hostilities between the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and Lebanon’s Hezbollah, pointing out that “Hezbollah has been preparing for this fight.”

“If there is a conflict between Israel and Hezbollah, we can be assured of two things. One, it'll be more violent than any conflict we've ever seen before in the Middle East. Two, Israel will likely lose,” Ritter emphasized.

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📹 What do we know about the mighty Russian S-350 missile system?

The S-350 Vityaz (brave warrior) anti-aircraft missile system, currently deployed in the special operation zone, shot down 12 HIMARS rockets in a single volley today, a commander of Russia’s Battlegroup Yug told Sputnik.

The system has proved its technical superiority on the battlefield, having taken down ATACMS missiles and various UAVs including aircraft-type drones.

What makes the Vityaz second-to-none?

◾️ integrated with the S-300, S-400 and S-500 long-range surface-to-air missile systems, designed to shoot down airborne early warning planes and tactical aircraft at long ranges

◾️ able to target cruise missiles and drones at all altitudes

◾️ increased fire performance at all angles

◾️ launches surface-to-air guided missiles using active radar homing (ARH) guidance

◾️ increased ammunition capacity of 12 missiles

◾️ increased survivability with two or three multifunctional radars

◾️ equipped with an independent power supply system making it independent of external power sources

◾️ has an armored cabin to protect the crew

Compared to the US-made Patriot, the S-350 is both more cost-effective and accurate.

The Vityaz, unlike the Patriot, is able to shoot down targets from as low as 10 meters above ground level, veteran military affairs observer and missile expert Alexander Mikhailov told Russian media.

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How has Israel expanded its territory over time?

Israel has made its largest land seizure in the West Bank since the 1993 Oslo accords, according to Peace Now, an Israeli anti-settlement watchdog. Recently, the Israeli authorities approved the appropriation of 12.7 square kilometers (sq km). Since the beginning of 2024 a staggering 23.7 sq km have been declared Israel's "state lands" preventing private Palestinian ownership, the group said.

Sputnik has studied how the territory of Israel grew.

◾️ As of 2023, around 700,000 Jewish settlers live in 279 settlements across the West Bank and East Jerusalem, up from 520,000 in 2012, according to the UN, with their number continuing to grow.

◾️ In 1993 the Oslo peace process was launched between Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO). Under "two state" solution, East Jerusalem, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip were to make up an independent Palestinian State. But despite withdrawing from the Gaza Strip in 2005, Israel continues to occupy East Jerusalem and to establish Jewish settlements throughout the West Bank.

On November 29 1947, the UN General Assembly passed a resolution calling for Palestine to be partitioned between Arabs and Jews — with Palestinian and Arab delegations rejecting the move.

◾️ Israel's founding was declared on May 14, 1948, followed by the First Arab-Israeli War. In the wake of the war, Israel expanded its initial territory to 77% of the former British Palestine mandate, while Jordan occupied the West Bank and Egypt took the Gaza Strip.

◾️ In the aftermath of the Six-Day War of June 5-10 1967, Israel seized the Golan Heights from Syria, the West Bank from Jordan and the Gaza Strip and the Sinai Peninsula from Egypt, and took control of Jerusalem — capturing a total of 70,000 sq km.

◾️ The Camp David Accords of 1978 between Israel and Egypt led to Israel's withdrawal from Sinai. Jordan renounced its claims to the Israeli-occupied West Bank in 1988.

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Kamala Harris shimmying her way to the Oval Office

Biden’s catastrophic performance at the first debate with Donald Trump made democrats scratch their head in search of a new candidate to represent the party.

The vice president appears to be particularly cheery in light of the tangible prospect to run for president against Trump.

Are Harris’s groovy moves enough to secure the Dems’ support?

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US President Joe Biden is planning to sleep more, so he will not plan events later than 8 p.m., CNN reported, citing sources. The president allegedly told Democratic governors about it at a meeting at the White House.

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A Typhoon fighter jet operated by US-allied forces came dangerously close to an An-30 aircraft of the Russian Aerospace Forces over the Syrian province of Homs.

The high professionalism of a Russian pilot prevented a collision, the deputy head of the Russian Defense Ministry's Center for Reconciliation of Opposing Sides in Syria Major General Yury Popov said.

"On July 3, from 09:44 to 09:51 over the Et-Tanf area of Homs province, there was a dangerous rapprochement between a Typhoon fighter jet of the 'coalition' and an An-30 aircraft of the Russian Aerospace Forces, which was making a routine flight in Syrian airspace. The Russian pilot, demonstrating high professionalism, took the necessary measures to prevent the collision in a timely fashion," the general said.

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