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By Ori Lewis

JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israel successfully launched on Tuesday a highly accurate imaging satellite which will enhance its ability to spy on Iran, an official said.

Israeli Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz said this week that the nuclear program being pursued by arch-foe Iran was the most serious threat faced by Jews since the Nazi Holocaust.

"The launching of the satellite was successful," an official with the manufacturer ImageSat International said.

Shimon Eckhaus, the firm's chief executive, told Reuters earlier on Tuesday: "The capabilities of the satellite speak for themselves. I do not need to say anything about what the purpose of its use might be."

A report in Israeli daily Yedioth Ahronoth said the Eros B satellite has a camera which can decipher objects on the ground as small as 70 centimeters (about two feet) across.

Eckhaus confirmed the accuracy of the published details to Reuters.

The report said Eros B will join an earlier version of the satellite, launched in December 2000. Both are set to augment the work of Israel's declared spy satellite, Ofek 5, which regularly passes over Arab territory.

The Yedioth report said that Israel was planning to send up another spy satellite with the ability to view objects in all weather conditions and in darkness. The Eros satellites are effective only in daylight and in clear visibility.