Iran launches three satellites into space as tensions rise

Iran said on Sunday that it successfully launched three satellites into space with a rocket that had multiple failures in the past, the latest for a program that the West says improves Tehran’s ballistic missiles. The launch comes as heightened tensions grip the wider West Asia over Israel’s continued war on Hamas in the Gaza Strip, sparking fears of a regional conflict.

 

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TV named the launched satellites Mahda, Kayhan-2 and Hatef-1. It described the Mahda as a research satellite, while the Kayhan and the Hatef were nano satellites focused on global positioning and communication respectively. Iran’s Information and Communications Technology Minister Isa Zarepour said the Mahda had already sent signals back to Earth.