U.S.officials said no part of the three-stage vehicle reached orbit, and that in any case it amounted to a long-range ballistic missile test forbidden under a Security Council resolution that followed its October 2006 nuclear test.

VOA: standard.2009.04.14

At the same time al-Arabiya TV reported that Grand Ayatollah Yousef Sanei, who is a reformist cleric, had issued a religious edict proclaiming that Mr.Ahmedinejad was "not the president and that it is forbidden to cooperate with his government."

VOA: standard.2009.06.14