This article is from the source 'guardian' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/jun/06/iran-claims-to-have-created-long-range-hypersonic-missile-fattah

The article has changed 10 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 5 Version 6
Iran claims to have created hypersonic missile Iran’s claims to have created hypersonic missile alarm Israel
(about 3 hours later)
State TV says Fattah missile has range of up to 870 miles and can bypass any regional missile defence system Tehran claims new Fattah missile has 1,400km range and could hit Jerusalem within 400 seconds
Iran claims it has created a hypersonic missile capable of traveling at 15 times the speed of sound, adding a new weapon to its arsenal as tensions remain high with the US over Tehran’s nuclear programme. Iran has alarmed Israel by unveiling what it claims is its first domestically made hypersonic missile that it has previously said would be able to hit the country within 400 seconds.
The missile – called Fattah, or “Conqueror” in Farsi – was unveiled even as Iran said it would reopen its diplomatic posts in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday after reaching a détente with Riyadh following years of conflict. The unveiling of the missile, named Fattah, or “conqueror” in Farsi, was attended by the Iranian president, Ebrahim Raisi. It is claimed to have a range of 1,400km (870 miles), that it can hit speeds of Mach 13-15 – or about 15,000 km/h – and that it has the ability to bypass air defence systems.
The tightly choreographed segment on Iranian state television apparently sought to show that Tehran’s hardline government can still deploy arms against its enemies across much of the Middle East. Hypersonic missiles can fly at least at Mach 5 – five times faster than the speed of sound – and their speed and claimed manoeuvrability is believed to make them difficult to intercept. Only four other countries claim to have them in their arsenals.
“Today we feel that the deterrent power has been formed,” the Iranian president, Ebrahim Raisi, said at the event. “This power is an anchor of lasting security and peace for the regional countries.” Iran said in November it was on the way to building a hypersonic ballistic missile that could manoeuvre in and out of the atmosphere. “It can bypass the most advanced anti-ballistic missile systems of the US and the Zionist regime, including Israel’s Iron Dome,” Iran’s state TV said.
Raisi claimed in a segment on Iranian state TV unveiling the Fattah that it was a deterrent that would be “a point of security and stable peace” for the region.
The domestically-developed hypersonic missile "Fattah", #Iran IRGC's most recent achievement, was unveiled on Tuesday morning (June 6) in the presence of President Ebrahim Raisi. pic.twitter.com/wzwUTRR3ezThe domestically-developed hypersonic missile "Fattah", #Iran IRGC's most recent achievement, was unveiled on Tuesday morning (June 6) in the presence of President Ebrahim Raisi. pic.twitter.com/wzwUTRR3ez
Gen Amir Ali Hajizadeh, the head of the paramilitary Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps’ aerospace programme, unveiled what appeared to be a model of the missile. Hajizadeh claimed the missile had a range of up to 1,400km (870 miles), which is about mid-range for Iran’s expansive ballistic missile arsenal, which IRGC has built up over the years as western sanctions largely prevent it from accessing advanced weaponry. “This missile power means that the region will be safe from evildoers and foreign aggression,” he said. “So its message to the people of the region is a message of security, and its message to those who are thinking of attacking Iran is that the Islamic Republic is a powerful country and its power aims to support the people of Iran and the oppressed people of the world.”
“There exists no system that can rival or counter this missile,” Hajizadeh claimed. Amir Ali Hajizadeh, the commander of the IRGC’s Aerospace Force, called the Fattah “a missile that is unique in the world”. No actual launch of the missile has been described by Iran and Hajizadeh later said there had been a ground test of the missile’s engine, which involves a rocket motor being put on a stand and fired to check its abilities.
That claim, however, depends on how manoeuverable the missile is. Ballistic missiles fly on a trajectory in which anti-missile systems such as the Patriot can anticipate their path and intercept them. Tuesday’s event showed what appeared to be a movable nozzle for the Fattah, which could allow it to change trajectories in flight. The more irregular the missile’s flight path, the more difficult it becomes to intercept. China is believed to be pursuing hypersonic missiles, as is the US. Russia claims to already be fielding the weapons and has said it has used them on the battlefield in Ukraine. Ukraine’s air force in May said it had shot down a Russian hypersonic Kinzhal missile with US Patriot air defences.
Iranian officials did not release footage of a Fattah successfully launching and then striking a target. Hajizadeh later said there had been a ground test of the missile’s engine. A ground test involves a rocket motor being put on a stand and fired to check its abilities, while launching a missile with that rocket motor is much more complex. In the past Iran has been accused of inflating its missile technology claims. The reports come just as Israel expressed growing alarm that the west was considering a new negotiation with Tehran to reinvigorate the stalled nuclear deal controlling Iran’s civil nuclear programme. The UN nuclear inspectorate, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), also said it had reached an initial agreement with its Iranian counterparts to reinvigorate its severely curtailed inspection process.
Hypersonic weapons, which fly at speeds in excess of Mach 5 – or five times the speed of sound – could pose crucial challenges to missile defence systems because of their speed and manoeuvrability. Iran described the Fattah as being able to reach Mach 15 – 15 times the speed of sound. The IAEA also said Iran had given an explanation for depleted uranium traces at one site, known as Marivan, saying it was due to the presence of a mine and laboratory.
China is believed to be pursuing the weapons, as is the US. Russia claims to already be fielding the weapons and has said it has used them on the battlefield in Ukraine. However, speed and manoeuvrability is no guarantee the missile will successfully strike a target. Ukraine’s air force in May said it shot down a Russian hypersonic Kinzhal missile with a Patriot battery. The Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, said Iran’s explanation was “technically impossible”, adding: “The agency’s capitulation to Iranian pressure is a black stain on its record.” The director general of the IAEA, Rafael Grossi, said his organisation never watered down its standards for political purposes. He also said Iran’s progress on allowing the installation of cameras at nuclear sites remained too slow
Gulf Arab countries allied with the US widely use the Patriot missile system in the region. Israel, Iran’s main rival in the Middle East, has its own robust air defences. There are reports Iran is about to receive about $24bn of currency shortly including $7bn from South Korea, $10bn from Iraq and $6.7bn in special drawing rights. Those reports may be linked to the recent release of three Europeans held in Iranian jails, and mediation by Oman. Discussions about the release of US prisoners are continuing.
In November, Hajizadeh initially claimed Iran had created a hypersonic missile, without offering evidence to support it. That claim came during the nationwide protests that followed the death in September of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini after her arrest by the country’s “morality police”. But the US ambassador to the IAEA, Laura Holgate, speaking to a quarterly board meeting of the nuclear watchdog, said: “Iran continues to expand its nuclear activities far beyond JCPOA [Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, the official name for the Iran nuclear deal] limits. In particular, we have underscored that Iran’s production of uranium enriched up to 60% has no credible peaceful purpose. No other country in the world today utilises uranium enriched to 60% for the purpose Iran claims.”
Tuesday’s announcement came as the the US secretary of state, Antony Blinken, is to begin a visit to Saudi Arabia. Israel’s economy minister, Nir Barkat, said it would “never, never allow” Iran to have nuclear weapons. “The Iranians should be deeply concerned, because if they come close to that threshold, they must realise that nobody in Iran should sleep well at night, because we will never allow that to happen. They should be really, really concerned.
“I remind our friends in America that we’re on the same line. We should all lay together and, naturally, it’s going to be easier for us in Israel to do it in collaboration with the rest of the free world, headed by the United States of America. This is my expectation, and I hope that Iran will understand, sooner rather than later, not to mess around with us.”
A reworked nuclear deal will be seen as a betrayal by the exiled Iranian opposition that continues to fight to protect the rights of political prisoners in Iran. It would also anger Ukraine, which says its cities have been bombarded by Iranian-made drones.