Iran claims another long-range missile

TEHRAN, Iran - Iran's military said Tuesday it has manufactured a new missile with a range of 1,200 miles capable of reaching Israel and U.S. bases across the Mideast, the official news agency IRNA reported.

The defense minister, Gen. Mostafa Mohammad Najjar, did not say whether Iran had test fired the Ashoura or had plans to do so, according to the IRNA report. The name means "the tenth day" in Farsi, a sacred reference among Shiite Muslims to the martyrdom of Islam's third imam.

Iran already had reported improvements in a previous missile that would give it the same range as the Ashoura, and Najjar did not elaborate about whether there are any differences between the two weapons.

Analysts believe Iranian military production has benefited from assistance from Russia, China and other countries, but many of Iran's weapons development claims have not been independently verified. More...