http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/iran/navy.htm
the above link contains a pretty good list of the iranian navy's equipment, and also a fairly trenchant summarization of its operational capability.
the iranian navy's threat to sail into the mediterranean ocean and force a breach of the israeli blockade of war materials to gaza is the operational equivalent of an ant floating on a twig down the river with a hard on, yelling "raise the draw bridge." it is, in short, an assertion/threat based upon delusions of grandeur.
it is doubtful, reading the list of "support vessels" and the naval forces, whether the iranian navy could reach the med.
and, then we have the matter of screening air cover. of which, there is none. nada. nichts. zilch. naught. zip.
no aircraft carriers. no airplanes that will reach the med. (if they had them, they could use them to deliver nukes, now, ... , couldn't they? this is why they are trying to develop missiles capable of delivering nukes, ... , isn't it?)
if there ever were a real world expression of the concept of "a tempest in a tea pot," the furor over the iranian "threat" would be it. if there is a confrontation between israel and iran on the waves of the mediterranean it is going to be an exceedingly short one. if the iranian vessel(s) is(are) sunk in shallow enough waters, perhaps it(they) will become an artificial reef and attract sea life, or perhaps it(they) will become a diving attraction for israeli tourists who scuba.
i am not sure that the iranians could even steam to turkey, in order to load on martyrs for the jihad.
the whole thing is nonsense, pure silliness, designed to amuse the excitable.
john jay @ 06.14.2010
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