Free Republic

Book Trailer of "Voyage to Alpha Centauri: A Novel"World-class Nobel Laureates go on a 10 year voyage to Proxima Centauri on a luxury space liner. They discover that an ancient, diabolical Earth civilization had made it there before them--and had booby-trapped its archeological remains to destroy them. An Iranian Nobel Laureate relates his experience as a child, seeing Teheran being nuclear-bombed from over some mountains.

Iran's Revolutionary Guards say Saudi Arabia was behind twin attacks in Teheran on Wednesday (June 7) that killed at least 12 people and injured 43, a statement published by the Guards said.

Iran's Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) is in the midst of a large-scale missile exercise called "Great Prophet 6." In an interview on the Arabic-language TV channel Al-Alam, Brig.-Gen. Amir Ali Hagizadeh discussed the IRGC exercise and its objectives. The extensive interview with Hagizadeh suggests that Iran is devoting much thought to its deterrence doctrine against those it regards as its main threats in the region, namely, Israel and the U.S. It is evident that Hagizadeh views Lebanon as a forward missile base for Iran.

Iran to arrest women with suntan By Xien Jana Vencio Better hide those bronzed skin when visiting Tehran, Iran. At least if you are a woman. On Thursday, Tehran police chief Brig. Gen. Hossien Sajedinia has warned that all women sporting a tan will be arrested and imprisoned because this violates the "spirit of Islamic law." Thus, any woman that looked like a "walking mannequin" will be punished. He said that the Iranian public expects the police to act firmly and swiftly to any social misbehavior caused by women, and men, particularly those who defy the Islamic values. He cited...

Less than a year ago, the Obama Administration cancelled plans for the so-called Third Site ground-based missile defense in Europe arguing that the near-term threat did not warrant deployment of a high-end defensive capability. Instead, the administration declared that it was pursuing a phased adaptive approach to missile defenses that would only deploy those capabilities needed to deal with the threat as it emerged. Only a few months ago, the administration published its Ballistic Missile Defense Review validating a new strategy for the defense of Europe based on a different system built around the Aegis ship-based missile defense system with...

As I write this 12:45am Eastern Standard Time) morning has already dawned in Tehran, Iran. February 11th is the anniversary of the Islamic Revolution. But this year, the fireworks may just be real... With a mad man (Ahmadinejad) racing to collect nuclear weapons and constantly threatening the existence of Israel, we sometimes forget that Iran is a nation of people who have built a solidarity movement towards returning to democracy. The prediction is that they will take a stand against Ahmadinejad and in favor of democracy on this anniversary. This was the kind of call America used to answer either...

Caveats:1) The streaming video, located on THIS Japanese news web page, may only be up for a half day or so. The link could go dead, or could link to another, new story.2) Not all computer systems might be able to play the video. You might need Microsoft Silverlight installed, but probably most can see the short stream.3) Go to the link and hit the photo with the white triangle and stream. Now for the explanation of this important video taken today of photos of the cargo of an aircraft seized in Bangkok which was heading from North Korea...

Federal prosecutors are taking steps to seize four U.S. mosques and a New York City skyscraper owned by a nonprofit Muslim organization

Iranian report: Teheran developed anti-cruise missile system By JPOST.COM STAFF Iran has developed an anti-cruise missile system, state-run Press TV reported on Sunday. Announcing the latest milestone in the domestic military industrial achievements, Air Force Brigadier General Ahmad Miqani said, "[Despite] thirty years of military sanctions by the enemy, the armed forces have taken appropriates steps toward self-sufficiency and have been able not only to update their equipment, but also to achieve wide-ranging progress in the military and aerospace sector." The Khatam al-Anbiya Air Base, which operates under the supervision of general Miqani, is the unitary supreme body coordinating and...

Skyscrapercity.com has an interesting thread. It was warned that the Baseej regime thugs would mark homes of suspected rebels with paint. People were tried to be warned to remove it ASAP. CNN has a night time video (the audio is more telling and shocking) of probably these marked homes being stormed by govt. thugs. VIDEO

The United States has stepped back from the notion of "regime change" in Iran, US Sen. John Kerry stressed Wednesday, urging that Iran also moderate its actions. We are not in a regime change mode," said the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee during a hearing on the Islamic Republic. "Just as we abandon calls for regime change in Teheran and recognize a legitimate Iranian role in the region, Iran's leaders must moderate their behavior and that of their proxies, Hizbullah and Hamas." Kerry praised the Obama administration's focus on diplomacy with Iran, adding that "engagement alone is not...

RESIDENTS at certain addresses in the Gaza Strip have been receiving unusual phone calls since the Israeli air assault began on Saturday - a request that they and their families leave their homes as soon as possible for their own safety.

Iran has blamed Georgia for its confrontation with Russia and in a reference to Israel and the U.S., urged regional countries to unite against foreign interference. Iran’s Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki said on Saturday Georgia caused the crisis because it miscalculated the reaction to its use of military power in South Ossetia. Speaking earlier on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit, Iran’s President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said the conflict would not have taken place had Georgia “not allowed countries from outside the region to interfere in their internal affairs.” Analysts say that wary of U.S. troop presence in...

Last week, the pistachio nut dropped. With adequate missile defense technology, I had questioned the necessity of a preemptive attack on Iran’s nuclear capability. Uncomfortable as living with an Iranian bomb would be, I thought, better to defend ourselves than attack first. And why should Israel – alone – take such risks? Overflowing with dire predictions and warnings, pleas for negotiations and economic and diplomatic sanctions, the media, politicians and ‘experts’ left me confused. Why is an Iranian nuclear arsenal ‘intolerable?’ I wondered, until I attended a press briefing by Dr. Shmuel Bar, Director of Studies at The Institute for...

Iranian President accused of indecency Times Online May 2, 2007 Jenny Booth The President of Iran has been accused of indecency after he publicly kissed an elderly woman who used to be his school teacher. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was photographed and filmed by state media stooping to kiss the woman’s hand and then clasping her arms in an embrace, at a ceremony yesterday in honour of Iranian teachers’ day. According to sharia law, it is forbidden for a man to have any physical contact with a woman to whom he is not related. “The Muslim Iranian people have no recollection of...

Iran bans 'Western' haircuts for men April 30, 2007 TEHRAN'S barbers are to stop offering Iranian men unconventional Western hairstyles amid a nationwide crackdown on dressing deemed to be unIslamic, the Etemad newspaper reported on Sunday. The paper quoted the head of the Tehran barbers' association as saying police had issued a directive forbidding its members from giving men offbeat hairstyles that are all the rage in more affluent parts of the capital. "Currently some salons use Western grooming methods to create styles that are in line with the European and American ones," said the association's head, Mohammad Eftekhari-Fard. "The...

Tehran's standoff with west sees tourists snub Persian treasuresIndustry faces collapse as tension grows over nuclear issue and sailors' detention Robert Tait in Tehran, The Guardian Thursday April 12 2007 Siosepol Bridge in the ancient city of Isfahan. Iran's tourist trade has been badly damaged by recent events. Photograph: Alamy With its enduring relics of a glorious imperial past, spectacular glittering mosques and breathtaking landscapes, Iran lays claim to some of the finest cultural jewels in the Middle East. But a potentially catastrophic collapse in the country's tourist trade is threatening to leave this dazzling array of attractions largely unseen...

Conservative parliamentarian Amir Hassankhani, a former member of the country's Revolutionary Guard and supporter of the president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, told the country's semi-official Fars news agency: "The arrest and release of the British sailors proved that if Iran's issues and demands are overlooked at the international level, the Islamic republic can create different challenges for the other side."

Buoyant Teheran warns of further kidnappings By Gethin Chamberlain, Philip Sherwell and Tim Shipman, Sunday Telegraph Last Updated: 11:56pm BST 07/04/2007 Hardliners in the Iranian regime have warned that the seizure of British naval personnel demonstrates that they can make trouble for the West whenever they want to and do so with impunity. President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad: a PR bounce The bullish reaction from Teheran will reinforce the fears of western diplomats and military officials that more kidnap attempts may be planned. The British handling of the crisis has been regarded with some concern in Washington, and a Pentagon defence official...

Teheran agents smuggled in missile that shot down RAF helicopter in Iraq, inquiry finds By Sean Rayment, Defence Correspondent, Sunday Telegraph Last Updated: 12:48am GMT 04/03/2007 A missile which brought down an RAF Lynx helicopter and killed five British Service personnel was smuggled into Iraq by Iranian agents, an official inquiry into the attack will reveal. The Sunday Telegraph has learnt that a British Army Board of Inquiry (BOI) into the events surrounding last May's attack will state that the weapon, a shoulder-launched surface-to-air missile known as an SA14 Strella, came from Iran. The attack, which was also responsible for...