Iran Is Completely Overhauling Its Missile Technology

At first glance it looks like the set of a James Bond movie -- a seemingly impregnable mountain base packed full of uniformed men and sinister-looking missiles on their launch vehicles parked along a long tunnel buried deep underground.

But this is in fact a real-life missile facility in Iran, according to the country's semi-official FARS news agency.

In a rare moment of openness, Iran on Wednesday broadcast pictures from The Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) Aerospace Force of a tunnel reportedly dug some 1,640 feet (500 meters) under a mountain.

The release of this footage comes just a few days after state media reported that Iran had test-fired new generation long-range ballistic missiles.

The weekend test likely violated a U.N. resolution, a U.S. administration official told CNN.

Based on information the administration has so far, the test appears to be in violation of U.N. Security Council Resolution 1929, which stipulates that Iran cannot engage in any activities related to ballistic missiles.

The U.S. official emphasized, however, that the test is not in violation of the nuclear agreement reached in July between Iran, the United States and five other world powers because that accord is focused on restricting Iran's path to a nuclear weapon.

A newer U.N. Security Council resolution, number 2231, implementing the deal and banning Iran from engaging in activities related to ballistic missiles designed to carry nuclear warheads is not yet in effect.

Iran is completely overhauling its missile technology, replacing the current stockpile with newer weapons, a senior general told state media.

"As of next year, a new and advanced generation of long-range liquid and solid fuel missiles will replace the current products," said Brigadier General Amir Ali Hajizadeh.

"The missiles in various ranges are mounted on the launchers in all bases and (are) ready to be launched."

The underground facility shown on television was only one of "numerous missile bases" scattered across the country, according to Hajizadeh.

Earlier this month in a speech at a university in Tehran, Hajizadeh said that all U.S. military bases in the Middle East were within range of Iranian missiles.

The revealing of the underground bases comes in the wake of a major deal reached by Iran and the so-called P5+1 group of nations -- the U.S., U.K., Russia, China, France and Germany -- over its nuclear program.

Under the deal, international sanctions on Iran will be lifted in return for restrictions on its nuclear program aimed at preventing it from being able to develop an atomic bomb.

Iran is a major regional military power and Revolutionary Guards forces have been active in Syria, working to prop up the regime of close Tehran ally Bashar al-Assad with military aid and advisers.

Turkey; Ankara Bomb Attacks 30 Killed, 126 Injured

Turkey's Interior Ministry says two bomb explosions apparently targeting a peace rally in the capital Ankara has killed 30 people and injured 126 others.

The ministry said the explosions occurred as demonstrators were starting to gather for the rally Saturday. It condemned the attack which it said "targets Turkey's democracy and peace."

The explosions occurred minutes apart near Ankara's train station as people gathered for the rally organized by the country's public sector workers' trade union. The rally aimed to call for an end to the renewed violence between Kurdish rebels and Turkish security forces.

It was not clear if the attacks, which came weeks before Turkey's Nov. 1 elections, were suicide bombings.

 

Prague's Astronomical Clock has Turned 605 Years Old

Prague's astronomical clock, the oldest working clock of its kind in the world, has turned 605 years old, and Google has marked the occasion with a Google Doodle.

The ornate clock, known as the Orloj, is one of Prague's most recognised touristic spectacles, and is located in the Old Town Square in the centre of the city. Its hourly shows draw curious visitors from all over the world, where 12 apostles emerge from two windows to nod at the crowds below.

Other allegorical figures include Death, as a skeleton holding an hourglass, a miser with a purse of coins, a Turk shaking his head and Vanity peering into a mirror. The 12 zodiac medallions below the clockface itself were added by Josef Manes in 1865.

"Despite over a half a millennium of wear and a brush with disaster in WWII, much of its original machinery remains intact, making it the oldest functioning clock of its kind in the world," Google said.

"Today’s Doodle honors a magnificent achievement in medieval engineering and a cultural landmark whose symbolism, design, and intermittent repairs are a remarkable catalogue of Europe’s past."

The clock consists of two dials; the astronomical and the calendar dial. The former represents how the medieval world perceived the universe, with the latter's outer circle describing each day of the year.

It was once believed that clockmaker Master Hanuš created the timepiece in 1410, and legend has it the city councillors were so enamoured with it they had him blinded out of fear he should build another for a different European city. Distressed, Master Hanuš is said to have thrown himself into the clock mechanism, dying immediately.

However, a document unearthed in 1961 claimed the clock was actually made by a Mikulas of Kadan in 1410, in cooperation with astronomer Jan Sidel.

The most recent renovation to the Orloj took place in 2005, when the statues underwent some repair work. The city marked the clock's 600th anniversary with a light show depicting its creation and key moments in its history.