Officials acknowledged that the parade, meant to mark Army Day and
attended by President Mahmoud Ahmedinejad, was smaller than in previous
years. They did not explain.
"Iran's armed forces are the guarantor of security in the region,"
Ahmedinejad said in an unusually brief address. "Today the Iranian nation,
with its religious armed forces, is ready to have a wide role in world
management and to establish security based on justice across the world."
The Iranian Air Force flew about 40 combat helicopters over Teheran
during the demonstration. The air force had promised to fly 140
fighter-jets, but officials said the fixed-wing missions were prevented by
poor weather.
"Despite the fact that air force pilots and fighters were ready, we
decided to cancel the air show due to dust and low visibility,"
Iranian Air Force commander Brig. Gen. Hassan Shahsafi said.
Unlike previous years, the military did not parade its Shihab-3B
intermediate-range ballistic missile, usually draped by a sign reading
"Death to Israel." The "Death to Israel" slogan was displayed on a truck in
back of the parade.
"Principally, the Israeli regime is not big enough to threaten a country
like Iran," Iranian Army commander Maj. Gen. Ataollah Salehi said.
Instead, the Zelzal rocket, with a range of 200 kilometers, as well as
unmanned aerial vehicles were displayed. Zelzal was deployed by the
Iranian-sponsored Hizbullah during the 2006 war with Israel.
The military also did not display the Ghader-1 missile, with a range of
up to 3,000 kilometers and shown in 2008. The army paraded armored personnel
carriers while the navy displayed its new miniature submarines.
