Spanning(en) rond Iran

[Jah]

The Failure in Moscow

Moscow Talks between Iran and the six major powers ended in failure today. The two sides, after seven rounds of talks in the past four years, could not even work out a minor technical agreement, even though the host Russia was desperate to show some progress. At the end, they decided to hold a low-level meeting in Istanbul on 3 July to "focus purely on technical details rather than the broader political issues," as EU's Catherine Ashton said

The Iranian delegation came to Moscow determined not to give an inch on enrichment issue. The Iranian thinking behind such determination can be summarized as follow:

•The U.S. has lost its war in Iraq and is losing in Afghanistan. It is in no shape to start another conflict with Iran.
•Israel is unable to attack Iran without active support from the Americans.
•The EU is in the midst of a financial crisis and cannot afford to worsen or prolong the crisis through a conflict in the Persian Gulf.
•The West cannot afford to keep the Iranian crude out of the market for long and will have to ease or scrap the oil embargo sooner than later.
•Russia and China would veto any action against Iran at the UN and the latter will keep purchasing the Iranian crude.
•Then why compromise now, the thinking goes. If Iran stands firm on its demand of continuing to enrich uranium even at 20-percent purity, the West will have no choice but to give in by this summer, the height of the US presidential campaign, and ease or lift the sanctions, at least the upcoming oil embargo.
•The West will be unable to stop Iran's nuclear program even if it wanted to and did make the bomb.

The problem with such thinking is not the accuracy or lack of any of these points. The danger inherent in such thinking, however, is for the Iranian leaders to overplay their hands, a tendency they have demonstrated over the years, like in the hostage crisis, the last years of war with Iraq and now going nuclear.

What if the world could survive without the Iranian crude, what if taking hard line against Iran could help both candidates during the US presidential campaign, what if Israel really sees a nuclear Iran as an 'existential' threat, what if the US would have more firepower available after the end of the Iraq war and the drawdown in Afghanistan... The Iranian leadership cannot afford to construct the best-case scenario and starts believing it in its entirety. There are not-so-well scenarios as well where Iran could suffer economic disaster or gets involved in a prolonged conflict, with all the uncertainties they would create for the country and its leadership.

The more prudent course of action is to compromise on some part of the enrichment program, like the 20-percent variety. After all, it was originally Ahmadinejad's own proposal to forego the 20-percent enrichment through a uranium fuel swap agreement with the West, a proposal that didn't go well with the hardliners in the West and especially in Iran.

For the West, there is also the danger of overplaying its own hands. In the current political atmosphere in Iran, the acceptance by the senior leadership of the halt to 20-percent enrichment, closure of Fordo plant and signing the IAEA additional protocol without lifting of all sanctions would be simply a political suicide. The settlement of the decade-old dispute would require the end of all sanctions.

By Nader Uskowi

http://www.uskowioniran.com/2012/06/...in-moscow.html

[jurrien visser (JuVi op Twitter)]

Top Iran en wereldmachten mislukt

AFP Toegevoegd: woensdag 20 jun 2012, 01:42

Een tweedaagse top over het nucleaire programma van Iran heeft geen resultaat opgeleverd. In Moskou spraken vertegenwoordigers van de internationale gemeenschap met onderhandelaars uit Iran.

EU- buitenlandcoördinator Ashton leidde de gesprekken en constateerde na afloop dat er nog altijd "significante verschillen" zijn. Volgens haar is het nu aan Iran om te bepalen of het land concrete stappen wil zetten om het vertrouwen van de wereldmachten terug te winnen. Begin juli wordt verder gesproken.

Boycot
De Franse minister van Buitenlandse Zaken, Laurent Fabius, zei na afloop van de ontmoeting dat Frankrijk de sancties tegen Iran wil aanscherpen. Hij wees onder meer op de Europese boycot van olie uit Iran die op 1 juli van kracht wordt.

Iran zegt dat het nucleaire programma alleen is bedoeld voor vreedzame doeleinden, maar de internationale gemeenschap vermoedt dat Iran kernwapens ontwikkelt.

Bron: NOS

[jurrien visser (JuVi op Twitter)]

U.S. braces for action in Persian Gulf

The U.S. Navy has sent four additional mine countermeasures ships to the region to oppose an Iranian threat to close the vital oil artery.

Published: June 11, 2012 at 12:41 PM

MANAMA, Bahrain, June 11 (UPI) -- Amid dimming expectations that next week's talks in Moscow will defuse the U.S.-Iranian confrontation in the Persian Gulf, the U.S. Navy has sent four additional mine countermeasures ships to the region to oppose an Iranian threat to close the vital oil artery.

The deployment doubles the number of mine-hunting warships the U.S. 5th Fleet, which has headquarters in Bahrain, will have operating in the region, through which one-fifth of the world's oil supplies pass.

The U.S. Navy has identified the mine-hunters as the Avenger class USS Sentry, USS Devastator, USS Pioneer and USS Warrior out of San Diego.

These slow-moving 1,379-ton ships, all transported to the gulf aboard heavy-lift vessels, will join their forward-deployed sister ships USS Scout, USS Gladiator, USS Ardent and USS Dextrous.

The British navy also has four mine countermeasures vessels in the gulf.

The Americans plan to deploy at least four mine-sweeping MH-53E Sea Dragon helicopters to the gulf as well.

The Iranians have threatened to close the Strait of Hormuz, the only way in and out of the gulf, if its vital oil exports are cut off or if it is attacked.

They are reputed to have in excess of 5,000 mines, many of them advanced Russian-built variants that are hard to detect and disarm. They also have batteries of Chinese-designed cruise missiles along the waterway's eastern shore.

Iran's air force has strike aircraft, although these are largely outdated U.S.-built F-14 Tomcats bought during the days of the shah. They have some Russian-made MiG-29s as well.

If a shooting war does break out, the U.S. Central Command believes it's capable of destroying or seriously degrading Iran's forces within three weeks, U.S military sources say.

This would be achieved largely through air and sea strikes using aircraft and missiles, the sources say.

The Americans have two navy carrier battle groups in the region.

In April, the Pentagon deployed an unspecified number of Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor strike jets, the most advanced operational fighter in the world, to Al-Dhafra airbase near Abu Dhabi, capital of the United Arab Emirates.

Al Dhafra is being used by U.S. Air Force KC-10 aerial tankers along with U.S. surveillance aircraft, including the venerable U-2 and the unmanned Global Hawk.

At about the same time, the Air Force deployed 20 upgraded F-15C Eagles of the 104th Fighter Wing of the Massachusetts Air National Guard to an undisclosed base in the Central Command area of operations.

Military sources say the Boeing F-15s are either at Al Dhafra or the large U.S. air base at Al Udaid in the Gulf emirate of Qatar. Al Udaid also houses Central Command's forward headquarters.

The F-22s and the 104th's F-15s are believed to have been training to operate together in the air-to-air fighting role, tasked with eliminating the Iranian air force's fighter squadrons.

"The Raptor-Eagle team has been honing special tactics for clearing the skies of Iranian fighters in the event of war," reported David Axe of Wired.com, which specializes in military weapons systems.

Axe noted that the "U.S. dogfighting armada" assembling in the Arab monarchies on the gulf's western shore that face Iran would likely operate in small groups, using silent electronic exchanges of data to "wipe out the antiquated but determined Iranian air force" with state-of-the-art missiles systems.

The U.S. air assets would provide a "significant dogfighting presence" in the gulf, Axe noted.

The F-22 has been deployed to the Pacific theater several times but has yet to make its combat debut since it was declared operational in 2005. But for all its vaunted combat capabilities, the aircraft's been plagued a serious flaw in its oxygen generating system that has caused some pilots to lose consciousness.

U.S. forces also have a heavy air component aboard the carrier battle groups headed by the USS Enterprise and the USS Abraham Lincoln in the region. Between them they can muster more than 100 combat F/A-18 Hornet and Super Hornet strike aircraft.

But former CIA officer Philip Giraldi has warned that U.S. Internal Look war games conducted in March indicated that the Navy "would have considerable problems dealing with Iranian offensive operations" in the narrow waters of the strait.

The games "revealed that there is a high probability that Americans vessels will be sunk, with considerable loss of life," Giraldi observed.

Read more: http://www.upi.com/Top_News/Special/2012/06/11/US-braces-for-action-in-Persian-Gulf/UPI-93431339432907/#ixzz1xg6gAi7J

[jurrien visser (JuVi op Twitter)]

Iran Plans to Build Nuclear-Fueled Submarines

TEHRAN (FNA)- A senior Iranian Navy commander stressed Iran's high capabilities in designing and manufacturing different types of submarines, and announced the country's move towards manufacturing nuclear-powered submarines.
 
Speaking to FNA on Tuesday, Lieutenant Commander of the Navy for Technical Affairs Rear Admiral Abbas Zamini pointed to the navy's plan to manufacture super heavy nuclear-powered submarines, and stated, "Right now, we are at the initial phases of manufacturing atomic submarines."

He noted Iran's astonishing progress in developing and acquiring civilian nuclear technology for various power-generation, agricultural and medical purposes, and said such advancements allow Iran to think of manufacturing nuclear-fueled submarines.

He further reminded that using nuclear power to fuel submarines is among the civilian uses of the nuclear technology and all countries are, thus, entitled to the right to make such a use.

On May 29, Iranian Navy Commander Rear Admiral Habibollah Sayyari lauded Iranian experts' success in repairing heavy submarines, saying their outstanding capabilities and mastery of the hi-tech used in naval vessels display the failure of enemy sanctions and pressures.

Addressing a ceremony to launch a heavy submarine after the subsurface vessel was overhauled by Iranian experts, Sayyari said that Iran is among the very few world countries with the ability to carry out full or partial repairs for submarines.

He said the submarine, called 'Tareq', is now fully ready to be dispatched to the high seas.

Last year, the Iranian Navy's Tareq-class submarine, 'Younus', managed to set a new record in sailing the international waters and high seas for 68 days.

Iran's Younus submarine, sailing alongside warships of the 14th fleet of the Iranian Navy, returned home in early June 2011 following an over two-month-long mission in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden.

The deployment of the Iranian submarine in the Red Sea was the first such operation by the country's Navy in far-off waters.

http://english.farsnews.com/newstext.php?nn=9103081864

[jurrien visser (JuVi op Twitter)]

Iran speelt spelletje met atoomagentschap

Geplaatst door Nick Ottens op 10 juni, 2012 - 13:59

Nog maar twee weken geleden leek er vooruitgang te zitten in de onderhandelingen tussen Iran en het IAEA. Het hoofd van de organisatie zei er vertrouwen in te hebben dat hij tot een akkoord kon komen met Iran. Wat blijkt? Iran hield hem voor de gek.

Het Internationaal Atoomenergieagentschap wil weer toegang tot alle kerncentrales van het islamitische land. Het gaat de waakhond vooral om het complex bij Parchin in het noorden van Iran. Daar zouden tests met explosieven hebben plaatsgehad die wijzen op de intentie een atoomwapen te bouwen. Uit satellietbeelden bleek recentelijk dat Iran die locatie aan het opschonen is. Verdacht dus.

IAEA-chef Yukiya Amano sprak er hoogstpersoonlijk met de Iraniërs over en die verzekerden hem een paar weken geleden dat zij bereid tot een deal. Vrijdag moest Yukiya toegeven dat het niet tot een afspraak was gekomen.

De Iraniërs lijken het spel geleerd te hebben van de Noord-Koreanen: dreigende taal uitslaan, een aantal raketten afvuren en vervolgens zo veel mogelijk concessies winnen van Westerse landen zonder zelf in te binden.

Iran gaat volgende week weer met de vijf permanente leden van de VN-Veiligheidsraad plus Duitsland om de tafel in Moskou. Het is in de aanloop naar die onderhandelingen dat het land het IAEA voor schut zet. Immers, waarom inspecteurs toelaten als je er niets voor terugkrijgt? Het is voor Iran gunstiger inspecties onderdeel te maken van de onderhandelingen met de P5+1, die willen namelijk geen van allen dat Iran ook een kernmacht wordt.

De Iraniërs onderschatten echter de bereidwilligheid van Westerse landen om militair in te grijpen. Des te langer de onderhandelingen voortduren, des te meer tijd krijgt Iran om een kernwapencapaciteit te ontwikkelen (nog geen daadwerkelijk wapen, dat duurt langer) en des te ongeruster wordt Israël. Hoe lang is Jerusalem nog bereid dit spel aan te zien?

http://www.dagelijksestandaard.nl/2012/06/iran-speelt-spelletje-met-atoomagentschap

[jurrien visser (JuVi op Twitter)]

Sources: Raptors sent to help Israel

But critics note procedure would combine untested plan with troubled jets
Published: 9 hours ago

WASHINGTON – A U.S. decision to send Air Force F-22 Raptors to the United Arab Emirates apparently is more than a mere training mission, according to informed sources close to the U.S. intelligence community, Joseph Farah's G2 Bulletin reports.

The sources suggest that despite continuing technical problems lurking within the advanced multi-purpose fighter, the Raptors are being staged in the UAE in preparation to assist the Israelis should they decide to launch a military attack on Iran's nuclear facilities. Israel and the U.S. believe the Islamic republic is developing nuclear weapons.

The jets also would be used to bolster the military capabilities of the U.S.-backed Gulf Arab countries.

The dispatch of the Raptors is said to be part of a new but untested Defense Department Air Sea Battle, or ASB, strategy to keep open the vital Strait of Hormuz through which up to 40 percent of the world's oil and other commerce transit.

The Iranians have threatened to shut down the narrow Strait that touches Iranian territorial waters at one point.

Such a shutdown, even for a short time, would cause major economic disruptions in an already serious global economic downturn, which is getting worse by the day.

The Raptors would supplement an Israeli attack that could deploy U.S.-made aircraft, nuclear-capable Jericho II missiles and nuclear-capable cruise missiles on electric submarines acquired from Germany.

The ASB strategy appears to be what Defense Secretary Leon Panetta referred to recently when he said that the U.S. had contingency plans in place to back up Israel should it attack Iran's nuclear facilities.

The ASB, according to the open intelligence service Lignet's former intelligence officers, would have the Raptors perform "exotic jobs" such as tracking Iranian submarine-launched cruise missiles and turning the missiles around to hit targets inside Iran.

The uncertainty in this scenario is that the Raptors are untested in combat and continue to experience some serious technical issues.

For example the oxygen supply to the pilots can fail, which not only endangers their lives but could crash this almost half-a-billion-dollar aircraft.

http://www.wnd.com/2012/06/sources-raptors-sent-to-help-israel/

[Harald]

Israel Arming German-Supplied Subs With Nukes: Report

BERLIN — Israel is arming submarines supplied and largely financed by Germany with nuclear-tipped cruise missiles, influential German newsweekly Der Spiegel reports in its issue to be published June 4.

The magazine said in a cover story likely to touch off a debate in Germany that Berlin had until now denied any knowledge that German submarines were being used as part of an Israeli atomic arsenal.

In Israel, foreign ministry spokesman Yigal Palmor confirmed only that his country had German submarines in its navy.

"I can confirm that we have German submarines. It's no secret," the spokesman told AFP. "As for the rest, I am not in a position to talk about their capacity."

Israel is the Middle East's sole, if undeclared, nuclear-armed power.

However, former high-ranking officials of the German defense ministry told Der Spiegel that the government always assumed Israel was putting nuclear warheads on the Dolphin-class vessels.

The article, based on a months-long probe, cited files from the foreign ministry in Berlin indicating that the West German state was aware of the practice as early as 1961.

Germany has already supplied Israel with three of the submarines in question, footing most of the bill, and another three are to be delivered by 2017 under a recently signed contract.

Meanwhile, Israel is weighing whether to order three more, according to the report.

"The Germans can be proud to have ensured the existence of the state of Israel for several years to come," Israeli Defence Minister Ehud Barak was quoted by Der Spiegel as saying.

The opposition Social Democrat Party called on Chancellor Angela Merkel's government for an explanation June 3.

"The federal government must provide information so that we know if the submarines delivered by Germany can be potentially equipped with nuclear warheads," party spokesman Rolf Muetzenich told Der Spiegel.

Merkel's spokesman Steffen Seibert said all submarines had been delivered unarmed.

"The federal government will not speculate on subsequent arming," he said.

The report said Germany hoped to see Israeli concessions on settlements on Palestinian land and approval for the completion of a sewage treatment plant in the Gaza Strip in exchange for the assistance.

Israel sees its existence under threat if its arch-foe Iran goes nuclear. Like the U.S., it has refused to rule out bombing Iranian nuclear sites.

Germany, bearing the historical guilt of the Holocaust, is Israel's closest ally in Europe.

But it has sharply criticized Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's pro-settlement policies in the West Bank and east Jerusalem as undermining peace efforts with the Palestinians.

Tensions between Germany and Israel flared in April when Nobel prize-winning German author Gunter Grass published an inflammatory poem warning that a nuclear-armed Israel "could wipe out the Iranian people (with a) first strike."

http://www.defensenews.com/article/20120603/DEFREG04/306030007/Israel-Arming-German-Supplied-Subs-Nukes-Report?odyssey=tab|topnews|text|FRONTPAGE

[jurrien visser (JuVi op Twitter)]

Cyber-attacks on Iran bought U.S. time

The United States under former President George W. Bush began building a complex cyber-weapon to try to prevent Tehran from completing suspected nuclear weapons work without resorting to risky military strikes against Iranian facilities, current and former U.S. officials familiar with the program said.

Barack Obama accelerated the efforts after succeeding Bush in 2009, according to the sources who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the classified nature of the effort. The weapon, called Stuxnet, was eventually used against Iran's main uranium enrichment facilities.

The effort was intended to bridge the time of uncertainty between U.S. administrations after the 2008 presidential election in which Obama was elected, and allow more time for sanctions and diplomacy to avert Iranian nuclear weapon development, according to the current and former officials.

The sources gave rare insight into the U.S. development of its cyber-warfare capabilities and the intent behind it.

One source familiar with the Bush administration's initial work on Stuxnet said it had stalled Iran's nuclear program by about five years.

"It bought us time. First, it was to get across from one administration to the next without having the issue blow up. And then it was to give Obama a little more time to come up with alternatives, through the sanctions, et cetera," said the source.

Only in recent months have U.S. officials become more open about the work of the United States and Israel on Stuxnet, the sophisticated cyber-weapon directed against Iran's Natanz nuclear enrichment facility that was first detected in 2010.

The cyber-attacks provided the United States with an avenue to try to stop Iran from producing a suspected weapon without turning to military strikes against Iranian facilities – all at a time when U.S. forces already were fighting wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the sources said.

In the end, senior U.S. officials agreed the benefit of stalling Iran's nuclear program was greater than the risks of the virus being harnessed by other countries or terrorist groups to attack U.S. facilities, one source said.

HUNDREDS OF MILLIONS OF DOLLARS

Two sources with direct knowledge of the U.S. program said it cost hundreds of millions of dollars to carry out.

The United States for years has been developing – and using – offensive cyber-capabilities to interfere with the computers of adversaries, including during the Battle of Falluja in Iraq in 2004 and in finding Osama bin Laden and other al Qaeda figures, the sources said.

Last year, the United States also explicitly stated for the first time that it reserved the right to retaliate with military force against a cyber-attack.

The New York Times reported on Friday that from his first months in office, Obama secretly ordered attacks of growing sophistication on the computer systems running the main Iranian nuclear enrichment facilities, greatly widening the first sustained U.S. use of cyber-weapons. The Times said the attacks were code-named Olympic Games.

White House spokesman Josh Earnest declined comment on the substance of the New York Times article, but denied "in the strongest possible terms" that it was an authorized leak of classified information. Obama is seeking re-election on November 6 in part on the strength of his foreign policy achievements.

Reuters reported on May 29 that the United Nations agency charged with helping member nations secure their national infrastructures plans to issue a sharp warning about the risk of the Flame computer virus that was recently discovered in Iran and other parts of the Middle East.

Stuxnet is one of many weapons in the U.S. cyber-arsenal, which some experts say also includes a data-gathering tool known as Duqu that was deployed to cull information about Iran's weapons programs.

Iranian officials have described the cyber-attacks as part of a "terrorist" campaign backed by Israel and the United States.

Some current and former U.S. officials, who asked not to be named, criticized the Obama administration for talking too freely to the media about classified operations.

Representative Peter King, the Republican chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Homeland Security, said, "I believe that no one, including the White House, should be discussing cyber-attacks."

"The U.S. will now be blamed for any sophisticated, malicious software, even if it was the Chinese or just criminals," added Jason Healey, who has worked on cyber-security for the Air Force, White House and Goldman Sachs, and is now with the Atlantic Council research group.

http://mybroadband.co.za/news/security/51669-cyber-attacks-on-iran-bought-u-s-time.html

[jurrien visser (JuVi op Twitter)]

Satellite photos said to show Iran nuke clean up

By GEORGE JAHN - Associated Press

A nonproliferation think tank has published satellite images of an Iranian military site linked to suspected secret work on nuclear arms that it says shows strong evidence of a cleanup.

The May 25 commercial satellite photos obtained by the Institute for Science and International Security of Iran's Parchin facility appear to show that two buildings there were demolished. According to ISIS, that and other activities at the site, such as digging up and moving earth, strengthen U.N. suspicions of a cleanup.

A senior diplomat who was shown the images said that they showed apparent work similar to what is seen on spy satellite photos supplied to the International Atomic Energy Agency by member nations closely tracking Iran's nuclear activities. He demanded anonymity because his information is privileged.

klik voor foto's op de link.
http://www.lakewyliepilot.com/2012/05/31/1547270/satellite-photos-said-to-show.html

[jurrien visser (JuVi op Twitter)]

Iran: geen doorbraak nucleaire top

Reuters Toegevoegd: woensdag 30 mei 2012, 21:06

De Iraanse president Ahmadinejad verwacht weinig van het overleg met zes wereldmachten in Moskou. Dat zei hij in een interview met de Franse televisie.

De zes landen, de Verenigde Staten, Rusland, China, Frankrijk, Groot-Brittannië en Duitsland, komen volgende maand bij elkaar om Iran ervan te overtuigen het nucleaire programma te staken. Vorige week was er ook overleg met Iran, maar dat leidde niet tot concrete resultaten.

Volgens Ahmadinejad is er bij het overleg in Moskou op 18 en 19 juni geen doorbraak te verwachten. "Wij zijn niet gek. Wij verwachten geen wonderen bij de volgende ontmoeting."

De Iraanse president onderstreepte nog eens het recht van zijn land om uranium te verrijken voor vreedzame doeleinden. Volgens Ahmadinejad moeten andere landen uitleggen waarom Iran dat niet zou mogen en wat ze zullen bieden in ruil voor stopzetting van het programma.

Bron: NOS

[jurrien visser (JuVi op Twitter)]

Iran confirms Flame virus attacked computers of high-ranking officials

By Chris Irvine, Damien McElroy

6:00AM BST 30 May 2012

The admission came as a United Nations agency responsible for regulating the internet warned that the virus is the most powerful espionage tool ever to target member states.

Iran's cyber defence organisation, the Computer Emergency Response Team Coordination Centre, in a message posted on its website, warned that the virus is potentially more harmful than the Stuxnet worm that attacked Tehran's nuclear programme. It is estimate that the malicious software is 20 times more powerful than other known cyber warfare programmes, that could only have been made by a state.

Kamran Napelian, an Iranian cyber defence official told The New York Times that the virus "has a special pattern which you only see coming from Israel".

"The virus copies what you enter on your keyboard, it monitors what you see on your computer screen," he told the newspaper.

He said he was not authorised to disclose how much damage Flame had caused, but estimated it had been active for at least six months and had caused a "massive" data loss. He added that Iran had developed software to combat Flame, something the international community has yet to do.

Orla Cox, a security analyst at the security firm Symantec, said that Flame was targeting specific individuals, apparently Iranian related. "The way it has been developed is unlike anything we've seen before," she said. "It's huge. It's like using an atomic weapon to crack a nut."

Meanwhile Marco Obiso, cyber security coordinator for the UN's Geneva-based International Telecommunications Union yesterday said the warning they issued was the "most serious warning we have ever put out".

The formal warning tells member nations that the Flame virus is a dangerous espionage tool that could potentially be used to attack critical infrastructure, he said. "They should be on alert," he said adding "I think it is a much more serious threat than Stuxnet."

Figures released by the Kaspersky Lab, the Russian cyber security software maker that took credit for discovering the infections, show that infections by the programme were spread across the Middle East with 189 attacks in Iran, 98 incidents in the West Bank, 32 in Sudan and 30 in Syria.

Other countries where the virus was detected include Lebanon, Saudi Arabia and Egypt.

Unlike the Stuxnet virus, which attacked an Iranian enrichment facility, causing centrifuges to fail, Flame does not disrupt or terminate systems.

Iran believes the US and Israel are trying to sabotage its programme. It denies the allegation that its programme is weapons related.

A leading Israeli politician hinted at the country's involvement in the virus.

"Whoever sees the Iranian threat as a significant threat is likely to take various steps, including these, to hobble it," Vice Premier Moshe Yaalon told Army Radio. "Israel is blessed with high technology, and we boast tools that open all sorts of opportunities for us."

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/iran/9298935/Iran-confirms-Flame-virus-attacked-computers-of-high-ranking-officials.html

[jurrien visser (JuVi op Twitter)]

Iran doelwit van ongekend spionagevirus

dinsdag 29 mei 2012 | 11:33 | Laatst bijgewerkt op: dinsdag 29 mei 2012 | 17:07

Tekstgrootte 

MOSKOU - Een ongekend destructief computervirus voert aanvallen uit op landen, vooral Iran. Dat hebben organisaties die zijn gespecialiseerd in het beveiligen van computers laten weten.

Een ongekend destructief computervirus voert aanvallen uit op landen, vooral op Iran. 'Flame' is veel groter en complexer dan de tot nu toe bekende virussen. Dat hebben organisaties die zijn gespecialiseerd in het beveiligen van computers, laten weten.

2 jaar oud
Het Flamevirus is mogelijk meer dan 2 jaar oud. De 'meesterspion' kan behalve gegevens stelen ook computers bedienen en zo microfoons aanzetten en cameraatjes inschakelen. Orla Cox van virusbestrijder Symantec vermoedt dat een regering achter de code van Flame zit . "Het is professioneel opgesteld'' en er moeten veel middelen en mensen bij betrokken zijn, zei ze tegen CNN.

Flame zou op dit moment zijn binnengedrongen in computersystemen in Iran, Egypte, Israël, de Palestijnse gebieden, Libanon, Saudi-Arabië, Sudan en Syrië. De code van Flame zou deels overeenkomen met het virus dat in april het Iraanse ministerie van Olie aanviel.

Antivirus
Iran beweert dat het al een programma tegen Flame heeft gemaakt. De antivirussoftware "is vanaf vandaag beschikbaar voor organisaties en bedrijven die hem willen'', liet de cyberveiligheidsdienst van de Iraanse overheid dinsdag weten.

Volgens virusbestrijder Kaspersky is Flame 20 keer zo groot en ingewikkeld als Stuxnet. Die worm, die in 2010 werd ontdekt, voerde aanvallen uit op computersystemen van Iraanse nucleaire projecten. Flame betekent daarom een nieuwe fase in de cyberoorlog, aldus Kaspersky.

Israël
Wie achter Flame zit is niet bekend. Bij aanvallen op Iran gaat de verdenking vaak uit naar aartsvijand Israël, maar de Joodse staat geeft niets toe. Minister Moshe Yaalon van Strategische Zaken zegt wel dat ,,het redelijk is dat wie Iran als een grote bedreiging ziet, verschillende maatregelen neemt, zoals deze, om te dwarsbomen''.

© Gelderlander 2012

[Lex]

Some 18,000 components, including propellers and radars, were replaced on the Tareq (Russian Project 877EKM Paltus), one of Iran's three Kilo-class submarines, which entered service in 1992.

18k componenten is best wel heftig. Je zou bijna gaan denken, dat alles, behalve de hull is vervangen.

[jurrien visser (JuVi op Twitter)]

Iran Overhauls Russian-Built Sub

MOSCOW, May 29 (RIA Novosti)

The Iranian Navy has brought back into operation a Russian-built submarine, after major repairs with locally produced components, the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting company, IRIB, reported on Tuesday.

Some 18,000 components, including propellers and radars, were replaced on the Tareq (Russian Project 877EKM Paltus), one of Iran's three Kilo-class submarines, which entered service in 1992.

The submarine was relaunched from a dry dock in an Iranian port.

The other two Kilo-class subs are the Nooh (1993) and the Yunes (1997).

http://en.ria.ru/world/20120529/173734956.html

[Enforcer]

Uiteindelijk lost dat het Iraanse probleem dan wel op, want zo'n "shake" komt er toch wel een keer.