Can someone tell me what actually happened in this Iran thing?

Question

I'm referring to the capture and release of british soldiers

Answer 1

the iranians are being driven in to a corner [israel dosnt want any arab to have any means [work or peace ] because to the frightend chosen ones of god that may mean they would try to get palistein back to palistinians
thus thier one asset oil has had restrictions placed upon it [for egsample they are forbidden to actually own a refinery ,they can pump thier own oil but cant process it .the cost of exporting the crude and importing thier petrochemical processed product barly covers the inflated cost of importing them ,so as the need for energy increase , they come to the conclusion nuclear will at least provide their [some of their] energy needs thus they spend the money to begin setting up the means and then israel mossad neo messanic neo cons decide they may make a bomb
well parinoa ads to thier burden , un sanctions and then a vocal president get to the stage that they see the writting on the wall and try to head off the inevitable lobbied for destruction historiclly called armogeddon by seizing some sailors thinking to negotiate diplomatic channels
any way they after minimal fuss return the sailors in two weeks
demonstrating a humanity , that is a contrast to the acts of wantonimo ,yet get accused of terror non the less [for two weeks of more reasonable trwatment than accorded to those arabs chained for 5 yeatrs inwantonimo bay [cuba] that have had real terror inflicted including being terrorised by dogs m spat on sttripped , water [well its not tort ure because the us ruler says so
yet two weeks has revealed who is the human and who the beast ,exposed the true anti christian ,is in fact some lobby group for a foreign power and big buisness , so what has really happened scince we began our reign of terror on arabs is nothing excess has proven itself able to do anything , say anything , and pretend to be anything it likes
are arabs evil , well some are . are they all wanting war , not that i know of tghough they of course have thier own neo con messianics and fear mongers
who knows what has happened , i feel we are more under the full power and control of a neo con elite bent on sucking the final living things off this planet
no one is totally innocent ,no one is totally to blame ,its not god that disempowers peace it is evil decieved neo con messianics [of both sides] controlling humans by fear and omnipotant war mongering and gross deceits
what can we do about it
nothing
the 2 party system is in total neo con con-trol,
world wide might is right
we will be ruled by fear till the last shred of human decency is made back into dust
welcome to 1984 ,that setthe grand plan into 2007 type reality , no one /nothing can stop it
humans freewill allways was a lie
freedom allways was an ill-lusion
the natzies didnt die from ww2 ,it survived and sprang its 50 year plan
took over law /politics /media /health , well its got all the reigns of powers ,step by step . under the cloak of the sheep it killed ww2 ,it has simply pretended to be the opppressed , thus able to lable any oppressor prevention under generic and pre planned lables
possably many of those thatr serve the beast have no clue ,
they were picked for thier total obediance
for reasons reason could never fully comprehend
want some more sorbent green
they control from seeds that cant grow , to drugs that suppress symptom but never cure ,to law courts governance , intel ,media in short the got the control of banks .stocks , finance m credit and shared it with the most neo con messianics they could control with money , total neo con control
if you knew what is in our foods /waters /airs you would nt believe it /let alone want to tell real humans about it

Answer 2

The British Navy patrols the Persian Gulf and searches commercial ships for smuggled goods. The 15 Sailors and Marines were just finishing such a search (no contraband found, the ship's personnel were cooperative). The British ship could not approach near the commercial ship because the water was too shallow, so they had gone to it in inflatable boats. Several Iranian Revolutionary Guard boats arrived suddenly, like an ambush, and the Brits were out-gunned. The IRG sailors were aggressive and hostile and took them prisoner; the Brits decided they couldn't win a fight. Their ship was too far away to protect them.
The Iranians claimed the Brits were in Iranian waters. However, the GPS coordinates were in Iraqi waters. They were blindfolded, roughed up a little, and lined up against a wall blindfolded while Iranians ****** their guns, giving the impression they were about to be shot. They separated them from each other also. They were threatened with 7 years in prison if they didn't confess (falsely) to trespassing in Iranian waters. Each one individually (as they couldn't communicate with each other) decided to make some statements along the lines of what the Iranians wanted, while giving clues in their statements that they weren't really confessing to it. They separated the woman, Seaman Faye Turney, from the 14 men, and told her the men had gone home already. They made her wear a tunic and scarf instead of her uniform, and dictated letters for her to write. Statements by several of the sailors were televised.
Apparently there was disagreement within the Iranian administration as to what to do, but finally the decision was made to "pardon" the sailors and send them home with gifts. In a parting ceremony, they met with Pres. Ahmadinejad, who is at least a foot shorter than most of them, and exchanged polite hypocrisies. They were also interviewed by Iranian media. "We had a pleasant stay," said Turney, just like any polite British lady.
On returning to the UK, they met with their families and later several of them made a statement to the public telling their story.
The fact that the Brits were featured on Iranian TV suggests the incident was being used as propaganda for domestic consumption, perhaps to take the people's minds off their displeasure with the Iranian regime. This kind of use of prisoners is totally unacceptable in the West.
Also, it may have been thought that this incident would create pressure to agree to Iran's nuclear demands. If so, it was counter-productive.

Answer 3

We siezed 9 Iranians in Iraq.
Iran siezed the British boat in disputed waters
Both sides blustered a lot
Both sides released thier captives.

Answer 4

the main goal is to destroy Iranian nuclear powers an not ot threat the said Israel(the unjustified Jewish state) and whatever happens aside of this goal should be dealt with with as minimal looses as possible. but that does not, for sure, make any change in the plan to destroy any one who can threat the state of Zionism(Israel).

Answer 5

Are you referring to how the Iraqi Prime Minister wasnt allowed there. Here is the link from Yahoo news.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070408/ap_on_re_mi_ea/iraq_iran

Answer 6

they thought they were cute, the whole thing was staged from A to Z, INCLUDING THE NEW SUITS AND THE FAKE GUCCI BAGS.

Answer 7

Iran was dealing with two issues.
o- First, Iran captured 15 British Royal Navy personnel.
o- Second, Iran has refused to cooperate with the UNSC regarding cessation of uranium enrichment.

http://www.jihadwatch.org/archives/015783.php
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/middle_east/article1530527.ece
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070331/ap_on_re_eu/british_seized_iran_226
Various news media reported....
Fifteen British sailors taken at gunpoint Friday by Iranian Pasdaran (Revolutionary Guard) and Al Quds soldiers were captured intentionally and are to be used as bargaining chips to be used for the release of five Iranian officials who were arrested at the Iranian consul in Irbil, Iraq on January 11, by US troops. Some sources include that the US sought to capture two senior Iranian officers, were Mohammed Jafari, the powerful deputy head of the Iranian National Security Council, and General Minojahar Frouzanda, the chief of intelligence of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard.

US officials in Washington subsequently claimed that the five Iranian officials they did seize, who have not been seen since, were "suspected of being closely tied to activities targeting Iraq and coalition forces". e.
"
The targeted generals

* MOHAMMED JAFARI

Powerful deputy head of the Iranian National Security Council, responsible for internal security. He has accused the United States of seeking to "hold Iran responsible for insecurity in Iraq... and [US] failure in the country."

* GENERAL MINOJAHAR FROUZANDA

Chief of intelligence of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard, the military unit which maintains its own intelligence service separate from the state, as well as a parallel army, navy and air force

In addition, a senior Iranian military official said Saturday that the decision to capture the soldiers was made during a March 18 emergency meeting of the High Council for Security following a report by the Al-Quds contingent commander, Kassem Suleimani, to the Iranian chief of the armed forces, Maj.Gen. Hassan Firouz Abadi. In the report, according to Asharq al-Awsat, Suleimani warned Abadi that Al Quds and Revolutionary Guards' operations had become transparent to US and British intelligence following the arrest of a senior Al Quds officer and four of his deputies in Irbil. The first sign of a possible campaign against high-ranking Iranian officers emerged earlier this month with the discovery that Ali Reza Asgari, former commander of the Revolutionary Guard’s elite Quds Force in Lebanon and deputy defence minister, had vanished, apparently during a trip to Istanbul. Asgari’s disappearance shocked the Iranian regime as he is believed to possess some of its most closely guarded secrets. The Quds Force is responsible for operations outside Iran.
Last week it was revealed that Colonel Amir Muhammed Shirazi, another high-ranking Revolutionary Guard officer, had disappeared, probably in Iraq. A third Iranian general is also understood to be missing — the head of the Revolutionary Guard in the Persian Gulf. Sources named him as Brigadier General Muhammed Soltani.

http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/3DA5E7CF-F3AD-4478-ABB7-8B8A372E471C.htm
http://www.globalsecurity.org/wmd/library/news/iraq/2007/02/iraq-070207-irna02.htm
http://www.cctv.com/english/20070404/101635.shtml
Jalal Sharafi, the second secretary at the Iranian embassy in Baghdad, was captured in the central Karrada district by 30 gunmen in Iraqi army uniforms on February 4, 2007 and was released on April 2, 2007
http://www.iribnews.ir/Full_en.asp?news_id=234465&n=36
He arrived in Kermanshah, Iran on Thursday, April 5, 2007.

http://www.iribnews.ir/Full_en.asp?news_id=234459
Islamic Revolution Leader Ayatollah Sayed Ali Khamenei approved an offer by Head of the Judiciary to pardon or commute the sentences of a number of prisoners. The pardons were set to commemorate the auspicious birth anniversary of the noblest Messenger of Allah, Hazrat Muhammad, and his descendant, the 6th Shii Imam, Jafar al-Sadegh (A.S.), both falling on Friday. The inmates, some 1535 people, had received their sentences either in public courts or in revolutionary and military courts..
At 10:30 a.m. on March 23, 2007, six IRCG guard boats ambushed, surrounded and seized two Royal Navy 'ribs' (rigid-hulled inflatable boats) containing 15 Royal Navy personnel (eight sailors and seven marines) from the frigate HMS Cornwall. The Royal Navy boats were on patrol just outside the mouth* of the 125-mile waterway which divides Iraq from Iran. Sovereignty over the waterway, and corresponding territorial waters, is disputed between Iraq and Iran. A 1975 treaty recognized the middle of the waterway as its border. It is called "Shatt al-Arab" waterway in Arabic meaning "Arab Coastline". It is called "Arvandrud" in Persian meaning "Arvand River".
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/6494289.stm
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/I/IRAN_WHERES_THE_BORDER?SITE=MIDTF&SECTION=US&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2007-03-27-15-05-08
(map of waterway and HMS Cornwall area of operation)
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/6494289.stm#map

The British government release the GPS coordinates as evidence demonstrating that its 15 naval personnel detained by Iran’s Revolutionary Guards last Friday were seized while in Iraqi waters and not inside Iranian territory.
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/d26b393e-dbbe-11db-9233-000b5df10621.html

The British MoD says the Royal Navy patrol was inspecting an Iraqi fishing boat anchored at the mouth of the waterway which was suspected of smuggling automobiles.
HOSTAGES
British MoD say the British were:
o- 1.7 nautical miles (2 miles; 3.1 kilometers) inside Iraqi territory at precisely 29 degrees 50.36 minutes north latitude and 048 degrees 43.08 minutes east longitude

TRESSPASSERS
IRGC say the British were:
o- 0.5 km deep into the Iranian waters
http://news.sky.com/skynews/article/0,,30000-1257880,00.html
http://observer.guardian.co.uk/world/story/0,,2042289,00.html
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/B/BRITISH_SEIZED_IRAN?SITE=PASUN&SECTION=INTERNATIONAL
Map of both positions:
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/galleries/593.html?SITE=MIDTF&SECTION=US&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT

Iran justifies arresting the British crew because the U.S.arrested five members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps in Erbil in Northern Iraq on January 11.
http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1604546,00.html

Under the mandate of the UNSC Resolution 1723, the British team had been conducting a compliance inspection of a suspicious Iraqi merchant ship. The intercepted British crew being ambushed and surrounded by IRGC surrendered without a fight.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Nations_Security_Council_Resolution_1723

The British sailors and marines being held by Iran were ambushed at their most vulnerable moment, while climbing down the ladder of a merchant ship and trying to get into their bobbing inflatables. It took only three minutes for the Iranians, moving at 40 knots, to move from their legitimate positions monitoring shipping in their waters to come alongside the British
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/middle_east/article1582544.ece

It is alleged that similar Iraqi vessels routinely transport Iraqi Shiites into Iran for training by the elite Quds force, a branch of Iran's Revolutionary Guard. In addition, Iraqi vessels transport arms from Iran to Iraq.

The 15 Royal Navy personnel are being held in Tehran at the Revolutionary Guard Corps base.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/6494289.stm.

Iran has elicited "confessions" from the 15 British sailors they captured and may put them on trial for espionage.
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/middle_east/article1563877.ece

“If it is proven that they deliberately entered Iranian territory, they will be charged with espionage. If that is proven, they can expect a very serious penalty since according to Iranian law, espionage is one of the most serious offences.” Espionage carries a death sentence.
http://observer.guardian.co.uk/world/story/0,,2042259,00.html

Iran's detention of 15 Royal Navy personnel is "unjustified and wrong", Prime Minister Tony Blair has said. UK officials are waiting to be granted access to the HMS Cornwall staff, who were seized on Friday, and have not been told where the group are held. "It simply is not true that they went into Iranian territorial waters and I hope the Iranian government understands how fundamental an issue this is for us," Mr Blair said. "We have certainly sent the message back to them very clearly indeed. They should not be under any doubt at all about how seriously we regard this act, which is unjustified and wrong."
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/6493391.stm
(in French)
http://www.france24.com/france24Public/fr/administration/article-afp.html?id=070327102418.nid1l893&cat=monde

Iran announced it would release Faye Turney, the sole female among the 15 captured personnel of the Royal Navy. Clad in a white tunic and a black shayla-style head scarf, she appeared on Al-Alam TV, an Arabic-Language, Iranian state-run TV station that is carried across the Middle East. "Obviously we trespassed into their waters," was her statement which continued with details of how she had been treated.
http://www.comcast.net/news/international/index.jsp?cat=INTERNATIONAL&fn=/2007/03/28/621792.html
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/B/BRITISH_SEIZED_IRAN?SITE=PASUN&SECTION=INTERNATIONAL
see the video
http://video.ap.org/v/en-ap/v.htm?f=MIDTF&g=1EF1EAE6-3EFC-42CA-93E9-
more detail video
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/default.stm
see her letter to her parents
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/galleries/593.html?SITE=MIDTF&SECTION=US&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT

Iranian Prime Minister Mottaki has retracted the possible release of Mrs. Turney and indicated that Iran wants Britain to admit their "mistake".
http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D8O5FP200&show_article=1

Iran shows video of second British crewman, Nathan Thomas Summers. In the video he deadpans, "We trespassed without permission," adding he knew that Iran had seized British military personnel who strayed into their waters three years ago.
"This happened back in 2004 and our government said that it wouldn't happen again." Summers continued, "And, again, I 'deeply' apologize for entering your waters." Then he described the treatment he received as "very friendly".
(see video of Nathan Summers)
http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=c89_1175266290
see video
http://news.bbc.co.uk/player/nol/newsid_6510000/newsid_6510200/6510287.stm?bw=nb&mp=wm

British Prime Minister Tony Blair criticized Iran's threatment of the captured Royal Navy Crew.
o-- "I really don't know why the Iranian regime keep doing this. I mean all it does is enhance people's sense of disgust. Captured personnel being paraded and manipulated in this way doesn't fool anyone," Blair said. "What the Iranians have to realize is that if they continue in this way, they will face increasing isolation."
http://news.bbc.co.uk/player/nol/newsid_6510000/newsid_6510200/6510287.stm?bw=nb&mp=wm

On March 31, 2007, President Bush said Iran's capture of 15 British sailors and marines was "inexcusable" and called for Iran to "give back the hostages" immediately and unconditionally.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070331/ap_on_go_pr_wh/bush
(see video)
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/6514567.stm

http://www.cnn. com/2007/ WORLD/meast/ 03/31/iran. sailors/index. html
President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad -- in remarks carried by state radio and reported by the state-run Islamic Republic News Agency -- said, "The occupying British forces entered our waters, and our border guards, with courage and alertness, arrested them."
"These arrogants, due to their arrogant mentality and selfishness, instead of apologizing, they acted as if we owe them," he said.
Ahmadinejad also took a wider swipe at Britain and other Western nations.
"In the last 300 years, the arrogant powers have been stealing from other nations. They have enslaved the people of other nations," he said.

http://news.sky.com/skynews/article/0,,30000-1258555,00.html

In a compromise deal, Britian may promise that the Royal Navy will never knowingly enter Iranian waters without permission. Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad plans to make a formal statement on the crisis on Tuesday. Last night, he denounced Britain's failure to apologise and decision to go to the United Nations: "This is not the legal and logical way."
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml;jsessionid=D4IYRGPHZAGIJQFIQMGSFGGAVCBQWIV0?xml=/news/2007/04/01/wiran01.xml

A UK guarantee to stay permanently out of Iranian waters would exclude Britain from a Western military strike on Iran
http://www.debka.com/headline.php?hid=3997

On April1, around 200 demonstrators (mostly students) hurled rocks and fire crackers at the British embassy in Tehran. The crowd demanded the expulsion of the UK ambassador and the closure of the embassy, calling it a "den of spies".
They were chanting "death to Britain" and "death to America".
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/6515995.stm
http://news.sky.com/skynews/article/0,,30000-1258555,00.html

On 4 June 2004, eight British servicemen were detained for three days, after Iran said they had entered Iranian territorial waters. They were released unharmed, but their equipment was not returned. During their detention, according to former detainee Marine Scott Fallon, they endured a mock execution and appeared blindfolded and forced to apologize for their "mistake" on Iranian TV..
http://edinburghnews.scotsman.com/index.cfm?id=721052004

On the occasion of the end of the No Ruz (New Year) holiday (Sezdah bedar), in commemoration of the birth of Prophet Muhammad (Mawlid an-Nabi), Easter and Passover, Iran's President Ahmadinejad has announced that he would pardon all 15 hostages as a "gift" to the British people and would release them as a "humanitarian gesture".
(see video)
http://abcnews.go.com/International/story?id=3006706&page=1
http://cosmos.bcst.yahoo.com/?rn=49758cl=22900988ch=49799src=news-Yahoo
(partial transcript)
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/6526615.stm
http://news.sky.com/skynews/article/0,,30000-1259008,00.html
He criticized Britain for deploying Leading Seaman Faye Turney, one of the 15 detainees, in the Gulf, pointing out that she is a woman with a child.
http://apnews.myway.com/article/20070404/D8O9QA3G0.html

Sir Nigel Sheinwald, the Tony Blair's foreign policy adviser, held secret talks with Ali Larijani, secretary of Iran's national security council and his country's chief negotiator on nuclear issues to broker the deal to release the 15 Britons.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/04/04/wiran804.xml&page=1

While the 15 British sailors and marines were being detained in the Persian Gulf on March 23, 2007, by Iranian Revolutionary Guards, Iranian President Mahmaoud Ahmadinejad abruptly cancelled his appearance before the U.N. Security Council and sent stead, Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki to speak. He indicated that Iran was willing to continue negotiations but without the precondition that uranium enrichment must be halted.
Mottaki appeared before the UN on March 24 and said, "the world has two options to proceed on the nuclear issue: continued negotiations or confrontation. Choosing the path of confrontation ... will have its own consequences. "
http://apnews.myway.com/article/20070325/D8O3E7J00.html

The U.N. Security Council unanimously voted to expand sanctions on March 24, 2007. The new resolution 1747 calls on Iran to comply fully with all previous UN resolutions and join negotiations to reach agreement so as to restore international confidence in the peaceful nature of its nuclear program. Full transparency and cooperation with the IAEA are required. Suspension of Iran’s banned nuclear activities will elicit the parallel suspension of sanctions. The package of incentives offered Tehran last year for its cooperation remains on the table. The full text of the draft of resolution 1747 appears at this website:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/6455853.stm

Military confrontation may be on the horizon.

In addition to the British frigate HMS Cornwall, there is a multi-national strike force in the Persian Gulf. Furthermore, there are British naval vessels stationed at the Diego Garcia atoll in the Indian ocean. The British Royal Navy may take action with its Special Boat Service (SBS) , the British Royal Navy's special forces unit. The service's motto is "By Strength and Guile". It forms part of the United Kingdom Special Forces, alongside the Special Air Service (SAS), Special Reconnaissance Regiment (SRR), and Special Forces Support Group (SFSG).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special_Boat_Service

Ready to assist are the American aircraft carrier strike group aircraft carrier CVN-73 USS John C. Stennis (formerly in Indian Ocean), the American aircraft carrier strike group CVN-69 USS Dwight D. Eisenhower and the French nuclear carrier Charles de Gaulle and its task force are all in close appoximation in the Persian Gulf. A 3rd carrier group, the CVN-68 USS Nimitz, may also be in the Persian Gulf soon as it was scheduled for its WESTPAC07 deployment to replace the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower which was deployed December 2006.
http://www.debka.com/headline.php?hid=3961
http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/agency/navy/batgru-68.htm
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20070330/pl_afp/usmilitaryirannavy_070330160111;_ylt=Annlx2.rLEDDrJgz9RYaNIcUewgF
Amphibious ready group LHD-5 Bataan. In carrying out its primary mission, BATAAN would transport and land ashore not only troops, but also the tanks, trucks and other vehicles, artillery, ammunition, and complete supplies necessary to fully support the assault. LHD-5's armament system includes the NATO Sea Sparrow Surface Missile System (NSSMS) for antiair warfare protection, two Rolling Airframe Missile (RAM) Systems and two Phalanx Close-in Weapon System (CIWS) mounts to counter threats from low flying aircraft and close-in small craft. Six missile decoy launchers augment LHD-5's antiship missile defenses.
http://www.debka.com/article.php?aid=1265
http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/agency/navy/lhd-5.htm
The US may have deployed 4 or 5 carrier groups in the Persian Gulf
http://en.rian.ru/analysis/20070328/62741920.html
Hmmmmm
The big "E" CVN-65 Enterprise ready strike group
http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/agency/navy/batgru-65.htm
Maybe CVN-76 Reagan was deployed
http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/agency/navy/batgru-76.htm
http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/ops/where.htm
Maybe CVN-72 Lincoln?
http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/agency/navy/batgru-72.htm
Is CVN-77 Bush ready?
http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/systems/ship/cvn-77.htm

More details about military options can be found here:
http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/ops/iran-strikes.htm

On Tuesday, March 27, 2007, the two US strike groups, USS Dwight D. Eisenhower and the USS Stennis, along with guided-missile cruiser USS Antietam, conducted military exercises in the Persian Gulf. The participants included 15 warships and more than 100 aircraft..

Each carrier carries an air wing of F/A-18 Hornet and Super Hornet fighter-bombers, EA-6B Prowler electronic warfare aircraft, S-3 Viking refueling and anti-submarine planes, and E-2C Hawkeye airborne command-and-control aircraft.

Also taking part were six guided-missile destroyers, the Anzio, Ramage, O'Kane, Mason, Preble and Nitze; the frigate Hawes; amphibious assault ships Boxer and Bataan; and the minesweepers Scout, Gladiator and Ardent.
http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/world/2007-03/28/content_838185.htm

The Isfahan plant is above ground, but Natanz is more than 50ft below and would require either a tactical nuclear missile or a conventional bunker-buster bomb to destroy it.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/iran/story/0,,1753223,00.html.

Iran's Shahab-3 ballistic missiles are capable of carrying a nuclear warhead and can be detonated by a remote-control device while still in high-altitude flight as electromagnetic pulse weapons - even one of which could knock out America's critical electrical and technological infrastructure, effectively sending the continental U.S. back to the 19th century with a recovery time of months or years. Iran will have that capability – at least theoretically – as soon as it has one nuclear bomb ready to arm such a missile
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=43956
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