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Iran Focus
London, Aug. 24 – The new commander of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards
Corps (IRGC) Ground Forces was involved in terrorist activities in Lebanon during the 1980s, analysts say.
Revolutionary Guards brigadier general Ahmad Kazemi
was appointed on Saturday by Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei to head the IRGC Ground Forces. Kazemi closely worked with the new Defence
Minister Mostafa Mohammad-Najjar
in Lebanon.
In a ceremony on Wednesday to mark Kazemi’s new
post, the IRGC commander, Major General Yahya Rahim Safavi, acknowledged
the general’s past activities in the Guards’ Lebanon Force.
“I am better informed than anyone of General Kazemi’s
record of sacrifice, valour, and courage; from
his presence in southern Lebanon and difficult battles in Kurdistan to his
presence in the frontlines of the eight-year [Iran-Iraq] war” the news
agency ISNA quoted Safavi as saying.
Before being appointed commander of the IRGC Ground Forces, Brigadier
General Ahmad Kazemi was the commander of the
IRGC Air Force. In that position, Kazemi was
responsible for the production and development of Shahab
missiles.
“The [IRGC] Air Force under the command of General Kazemi
underwent serious development, and today the Guards Corps has the potent
missile force of the Middle East”, Safavi said.
Iran has successfully tested the Shahab-3,
which has a maximum range of 2,000 kilometres and
can hit all cities in the Middle East.
In late July, Iran announced that it had fully
developed solid-fuel technology in producing missiles, a major breakthrough
that increases the accuracy of missiles.
Kazemi was also responsible for research and
production of the Shahab-4 missile with a projected range of 3,000 km. Analysts
say that Tehran is working round-the-clock to enhance the
range and accuracy of the Shahab missiles which
is capable of carrying a nuclear warhead and reaching the heart of Europe.
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