Current Events in Mideast-Africa

CRS report, 6 December 2012 Irans Ballistic Missile and Space Launch Programs (pdf)

Sky News

From Defense Aerospace DoD Announces Activation Of Unified Geographic Command (Source: US Department of Defense; issued Oct. 1, 2008) The Department of Defense today announced the activation of United States Africa Command, the sixth unified geographic command within the DoD unified command structure. “It is, at its heart, a different kind of command with a different orientation, one that we hope and expect will institutionalize a lasting security relationship with Africa, a vast region of growing importance in the globe,” said Secretary of Defense Robert M. Gates. U.S. Africa Command will coordinate military-to-military contacts and focus on relationship…

From Defense Aerospace Submarine Training for South African Navy (Source: India Press Information Bureau; issued Oct. 11, 2005) INS Satavahana, the submarine training school of Indian Navy, undertook basic submarine training for officers of the South African Navy (SAN) on the Type-209 submarine, from 31st Jan 05. With this, INS Satavahana has joined the league of elite training establishments under the aegis of the Southern Naval Command, that provide training to friendly foreign navies. This has also opened up a new chapter in the role and responsibility of this premier submarine training establishment. The training capsule has been designed for comb…

From Jane's Israel braces for Syrian response By Alon Ben-David 05 October 2007 Israel is preparing for a Syrian response to the 6 September raid in northeast Syria, after both countries confirmed that the attack took place. Israeli intelligence agencies are mostly concerned that the Syrian response will be in the form of a terror attack on an Israeli target around the world. Israeli official delegations worldwide and airlines were ordered to increase precautions, recalling the Syrian attempt to bomb an El-Al flight from London to Tel Aviv in 1986. "I believe that the Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad would rather act through proxies, such as terrorist or…

From DefenseNews India Begins To Build an Aircraft Carrier By AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE, NEW DELHI India on April 11 began an eight-year project to build an aircraft carrier in its most ambitious military program to date, officials said. Defense Minister Pranab Mukherjee launched the construction of the 37,500-ton carrier at the state-run Cochin Shipyard in the southern state of Kerala, a naval spokesman said. The carrier will carry 30 British- and Russian-made jet fighters as well as locally designed light combat aircraft that took India more than 22 years to develop. Federal Shipping Minister T.R. Balu said the ship-building yard would complete the proje…

From Defence Talk Algeria to acquire six modern Sukhoi-30 jet fighters Xinhua News Agency | Oct 5, 2007 Algeria will acquire, in the next few weeks, six Russian-made Sukhoi-30 jet fighters, local media reported Wednesday. The six Sukhoi aircrafts are part of a comprehensive purchase order of Russian arms by Algeria concluded in 2006, worth nearly 4 billion U.S. dollars. This order also includes Mig jet fighters, anti-air missiles and T-90 tanks, according to the Algerian daily newspaper "El Watan." The high prices of oil have enabled Algeria, a member of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, to finance the professionalization of its armed for…

Angola receives first Su-30K fighters (Jane's)

From DefenseNews Saudi Arabia said on April 3 that a deal to purchase Typhoon Eurofighter jets from Britain, believed to be worth billions of dollars, was on course after technical committees signed relevant documents. ”The papers of the Eurofighter jets deal were signed by the (Saudi and British) technical committees on March 28,” Crown Prince Sultan bin Abdul Aziz told reporters. The documents “are now being studied by the political leadership (as a prelude to) signing them,” said Sultan, who is also defense minister of the oil-rich kingdom. ”The deal is on course, and there are no obstacles to it because it is in the kingdom’s interest,” he added. Saudi Arabia …

Meet Irans Carrier Killer: The Khalij Fars (The Diplomat, Flashpoints blog)

From Navy Times Nimitz set to replace Ike in Persian Gulf area By Barbara Surk - The Associated Press Posted : Sunday May 6, 2007 15:42:51 EDT DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — The Navy said Sunday it was replacing an aircraft carrier now departing the Middle East as part of the Bush administration’s stepped up military presence in the Persian Gulf area. The aircraft carrier Nimitz and the accompanying ships of its strike group were expected in Mideast waters within two days, replacing the departing carrier Dwight D. Eisenhower, said Navy Cmdr. Kevin Aandahl of the Bahrain-based 5th Fleet. The San Diego, California-based Nimitz will join the aircraft carrier…

From AOL Defense [excerpt]

From BBC News The Indian Air Force (IAF) has announced it will retire its fleet of MiG 25s, Cold War-era spyplanes, previously shrouded in secrecy. A spokesman said the last of the IAF's four surviving MiG-25s will be phased out of service on 1 May. The MiGs, capable of flying at over three times the speed of sound, were bought from the USSR in 1981. "It will be a nostalgic event and a flypast will be held," Air Vice Marshal S Mukherjee said. He said the aircraft would be shown at various installations after they had been retired. 'Darned good machine' India originally bought 10 of the MiGs from the Soviet Union and nicknamed the 20-ton reconna…

SA’s new generation of submarines Jonathan Katzenellenbogen BusinessDay.SA THE first of three of SA’s S101 new-generation German-made submarines will sail into Simonstown this morning, marking one of the final steps in the creation of the country’s new navy. Four frigates — general-purpose warships which can be armed with guided missiles — have already been delivered and two more submarines will be in service within about two years. Claims of irregularities in parts of the contract for the frigates, the lack of transparency in the industrial offset programme, the fact that it is very unlikely that the fleet will be used in peacekeeping, and just its sheer cost …

From Foreign Affairs, May/June 2007 issue Summary: By rushing into Iraq instead of finishing off the hunt for Osama bin Laden, Washington has unwittingly helped its enemies: al Qaeda has more bases, more partners, and more followers today than it did on the eve of 9/11. Now the group is working to set up networks in the Middle East and Africa -- and may even try to lure the United States into a war with Iran. Washington must focus on attacking al Qaeda's leaders and ideas and altering the local conditions in which they thrive. Read the remainder of the article at the link above.

Source: Naval Open Source Intelligence - http://nosint.blogspot.com/2012/02/iran-ma...hip-cruise.html Here's something to read as you enjoy your breakfast and morning coffee! The Zafar missile, as it is dubbed in the report, "is a short-range, anti-ship cruise missile capable of destroying small- and medium-sized targets with high precision." It can be mounted on speed boats and other light vessels, can withstand electronic warfare, and is able to fly in low altitudes to avoid detection, the report said. (rmks: Zafar (or another cruise missile) was recently tested from a Wellington class ACV during the last round of naval exercises). FWFS, Greg Emers…

From Jane's Intelligence Digest North Korean test emboldens Iran North Korea's apparent nuclear weapons test appears to have strengthened Iran in its defiance of the international community and increased the likelihood of an Iranian-Israeli military confrontation. Iranian leaders have reaffirmed their intention to continue their own avowedly peaceful nuclear programme. They believe that Russia and China, despite differences in their respective bilateral relationships with Tehran and Pyongyang, will resist applying harsh sanctions against Iran. Even if, against expectations, the UN Security Council eventually adopts sanctions against Iran, they would most l…

From Australian ABC news service https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-07-16/idf-launches-attack-on-syrian-military-headquarters/105540008?utm_source=abc_news_web&utm_medium=content_shared&utm_campaign=abc_news_web&utm_content=link

From Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS): Iran and the Gulf Military Balance (pdf)

India ready to export BrahMos The Hindu Special Correspondent Other countries also placing orders for cruise missile: Vice-Admiral Madanjit Singh MUMBAI: India has finally cleared the high-tech supersonic cruise missile, BrahMos, and Chile could be among the first buyers. "The export of military hardware is no longer an issue, and we have started exporting the BrahMos," Vice-Admiral Madanjit Singh, Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Western Naval Command, said on Thursday. He was addressing a seminar on "Navy-Industry Convergence: Challenges and Opportunities" here. Later, he told reporters that Defence Minister Pranab Mukherjee and the CEO of BrahMo…