SEOUL (Reuters) – South Korea is counting down to its first space launch on Wednesday that will likely open the door to its nascent rocket program and rile neighbor North Korea, hit by U.N. sanctions after its own rocket launch in April.

South Korea, which has relied on other countries to launch its satellites, plans to send a domestically built satellite into orbit on its rocket Korea Space Launch Vehicle-1, also known as Naro-1, from its space center in the south of country.

The Naro-1 is 33 meters (108 ft) long and the two-stage rocket was built at a cost of 502.5 billion won ($400 million), according to the South’s Yonhap news agency.

It is supposed to launch a 100-kg (220.5-lb) satellite into orbit that will monitor the Earth’s radiant energy. Lift-off is planned for 0740 GMT Wednesday at a site about 350 km (220 miles) south of Seoul.

South Korea has relied on Russia’s help with the Naro-1, with its Khrunichev space production center building the first stage, providing technical assistance and conducting tests.

“If we complete the development of the first-stage engine, we will then have the power to launch on our own. This is a tedious task though,” said Yoon Young-bin, an aerospace specialist at Seoul National University.

South Korea wants to build a rocket on its own by 2018 and send a probe to monitor the moon by 2025. It also wants to develop a commercial service to launch satellites.

But it lags far behind Japan, China, India, and to some extent North Korea, and is betting that after its first successful launch it can use its technical prowess to catch up quickly with its rivals.

South Korea’s space agency tried to play down expectations for the launch, saying in a report that only about 30 percent of countries’ first attempts to put a satellite into orbit succeed.

NORTH KOREA IS WATCHING

The South’s satellite launch serves as a point of pride and irritation for North Korea, which in April shot off a long-range rocket and was hit by U.N. punishment because the move was widely seen as a disguised missile test that violated U.N. resolutions.

North Korea, whose economy is about 2 percent the size of the South’s, has boasted about sending a satellite into orbit, circling the globe playing revolutionary songs, ahead of its richer southern neighbor.

U.S. and South Korean officials have said nothing was put into orbit.

North Korea chastised the United Nations for punishing it for the April launch and a Foreign Ministry spokesman said this month the state will be closely watching how the world body reacts to the South’s.

Apart from North Korea, few doubt the South’s launch will be anything but for its civilian space program. But the launch does raise questions about implications for regional security.

An outstanding Egyptian Shia announced four groups and organizations are active against Egyptian Shia Muslims.

Dr. “Ahmad Rasem al-Nafis” an Egyptian Shia Scholar mentioned that Saudi information organizations and Mossad in assistant with Al-Qaeda and Ba’ath Party are striving against Shia religion in Egypt.
He said main origin of religious differences inside and outside of Egypt originates from Iraq.

In continuation, he stressed religious differences are created by Israel occupiers and only Zionists profited from these disputes.

He mentioned that religious disputes were the leaven for the fall of Fatemian government.

Once again, Saudi authorities started a new phase of religious harassment against Shia citizens in Khobar city by preventing Jama’a prayers in any place after the recent closure of five Shia mosques.

Sources informed Rasid that State authorities is looking for Sayed Hashim Al-Sharaf for opening his house for Jama’a prayers in Thuqba neighborhood as a replacement to the closed Shia mosques in the same neighborhood.

The 30 year old man is wanted by the authorities to sign an undertaking to stop opening his house for Shia prayers otherwise he will be sent to prison.

Authorities had already closed five Shia mosques in Khobar city where about 20,000 Shia citizens live there according to unofficial sources.

In the same context, Saudi Intelligence Department forces Hajj Hussain Al-Rashed to sign an undertaking to stop opening his house for Jama’a prayers in the same city.

All closed mosques are Shia and one of which belongs to Ismaili Shia and the other four belong to Ethna Ashrya Shia who are the majority in the oil rich Eastern Province.

Saudi authorities do not allow their Shia citizens to build their own mosques nor have their own cemeteries in areas outside Qatif, Al-Hasa and Najran where they are majority.

The official bodies in Eastern Province Governance and the Ministry of Religious Affairs do not provide reasons for the ban on Shia.

As a reaction to the above events, Shaikh Hassan Al-Saffar condemned during Friday prayers suppression of religious practices in Saudi and warned of inverse consequences to creed debates and the trials for “imposing and suppressing” people’s practices and rituals.

The recent developments came after of 14 months from the Authorities campaign to close Shia mosques in Khobar which included calling and detaining several Shia clerics and leaders.

More than 20 Shia citizens were arrested for taking part in religious activities during Ashura on last January.

Shaikh Hassan Al-Saffar condemned during Friday prayers suppression of religious practices in Saudi and warned of inverse consequences to creed debates and the trials for “imposing and suppressing” people’s practices and rituals.

During Friday prayers in Qatif, Al-Saffar affirmed people’s freedom to practice their rituals and that societies experiences proved their ability to regained their freedom due to inverse consequences of suppression.

Amid the increasingly suppression rate against Saudi Shia, Al-Saffar condemned any trials to suppress religious practices of any sect.

Recently, Saudi authorities have increased their religious harassment by closing five Shia mosques in Khobar city and the return of arbitrary arrests campaign in Al-Hasa.

Most of the arbitrary arrests were made in Al-Hasa with about 20 detainees for taking part in religious activities during Ashura on last January.

In an  implicit warning to Saudi authorities, Al-Saffar said: “Many governments have tried suppressing people’s practices and rituals but the outcomes were inverse and people regained their freedom.”

He called for practices rationalization of religious festivals of Ahal Al-Bayet (Prophet Mohammad Clan) and not limiting them to trivial practices as “these practices carry deep meanings, goals and great purposes” Al-Saffar said.

Last weekend, about 2 million Saudi Shia celebrated the birth of Imam Al-Mahd (the twelfth Imam as per Shia Imamia sect) in a wide spread religious festivals.

Al-Saffar called the world and humanity attention to Imam Al-Mahdi and said “Imam Al-Mahdi is not an Imam (leader) of one guild, sect, country or nation, rather he comes to spread peace and justice all over the globe.”

He emphasized on ” the necessity to openly direct our attention to humanity away from retarded reality which we have imprisoned ourselves within.”

It should be noted here that all Saudi Shia citizens’ celebrations and festivals are not covered by any official or public media. In addition, official human rights committees are sightless when it comes to Shia suppression or harassment.