Iran weather chief slams general for claim that Israel stealing clouds

An Iranian general earlier today accused Israel of manipulating weather to prevent rain over the Islamic republic, alleging his country was facing cloud “theft,” before being contradicted by the nation’s weather chief.

“The changing climate in Iran is suspect,” Brigadier General Gholam Reza Jalali, head of Iran’s Civil Defense Organization reportedly told a press conference earlier today.

“Foreign interference is suspected to have played a role in climate change,” Jalali was quoted as saying, insisting results from an Iranian scientific study “confirm” the claim. “Israel and another country in the region have joint teams which work to ensure clouds entering Iranian skies are unable to release rain.”

Iran’s own meteorological service strikes a skeptical note, however.

General Jalali “probably has documents of which I am not aware, but on the basis of meteorological knowledge, it is not possible for a country to steal snow or clouds,” said the head of Iran’s meteorological service Ahad Vazife, quoted by ISNA.

“Iran has suffered a prolonged drought, and this is a global trend that does not apply only to Iran,” Vazife says.

— AFP