Free Republic

The Chinese spy balloon that traversed US airspace before being shot down over the weekend was roughly 200 feet tall, weighed thousands of pounds — and may have carried explosives meant for self-destruction, a top US general revealed Monday. The since-obliterated spy craft’s payload was approximately the size of a regional jet airliner, Air Force General Glen VanHerck, head of US North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) and Northern Command (NORCOM), said as he disclosed fresh details about the surveillance device. “Of the payload itself, I would categorize that as a jet-airliner type of size, maybe a regional jet such...

Pakistan test fires long-range missile By MUNIR AHMAD, Associated Press Writer Sat Apr 19, 3:44 AM ET Pakistan successfully test fired a long-range ballistic missile capable of carrying a nuclear warhead on Saturday, the military said. The Shaheen-2 missile was launched from an undisclosed location and has a range of 1,245 miles. The military said the missile has the capability to carry conventional and non-conventional warheads. Saturday's launch was witnessed by new Prime Minister Syed Yousaf Raza Gilani, who congratulated the scientists and engineers for "achieving an important milestone in Pakistan's quest for sustaining strategic balance in South Asia," the...

Tehran, Iran, Oct. 17 – Volunteers for suicide bombing operations will be honoured during a ceremony attended by senior Iranian government officials later this month, the spokesman for the “Headquarters for Commemoration of Martyrs of Global Islamic Movement” said on Sunday. The gathering which will take place in Tehran on October 30 has been entitled “Men of the Sun”, Mohammad-Ali Samadi announced in an interview with the state-owned Mehr news agency. Samadi said that forms would be provided to attendees to volunteer for suicide operations, adding, “Until now, 40,000 people have signed up for martyrdom-seeking operations and three battalions of...