Iran fired its biggest missile barrage yet at Israel on October 1, 2024, marking a significant escalation in regional hostilities. Only twenty-four hours after Israel’s Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu addressed the people of Iran by stating Iranians would experience freedom “a lot sooner than people think,” Iran launched Operation “True Promise 2” and claimed they had fired 200 missiles at Israel.
Immediately after the attacks began, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and the Iranian government issued a statement that the missile strikes were carried out under the “legitimate right of self-defense under the United Nations Charter”.
The statement also specified that the strikes were in reaction to the “massacre of the people of Lebanon and Gaza and the martyrdom of the great Mujahid, the leader of the Axis of Resistance, the Secretary-General of Hezbollah, Seyyed Hassan Nasrallah, as well as the martyrdom of the prominent IRGC commander and senior advisor, Major General Abbas Nilforoushan, in Lebanon”.
What weapons did Iran use?
Iran fired ballistic missiles, utilizing trajectories that extend beyond or near the edge of Earth’s atmosphere. These weapons were previously used against Israel earlier this year.
Iran’s missile capabilities possess a vast arsenal of ballistic and cruise missiles, covering a wide range of distances.
However, the exact number of missiles is not known. US Air Force General Kenneth McKenzie testified before Congress a year ago in 2023 that Iran had “over 3,000” ballistic missiles, according to a report released this year by the Iran Watch website, part of the Wisconsin Project on Nuclear Arms Control.
Ballistic missiles travel outside or near the Earth’s atmosphere before the warhead payload separates from the rocket and re-enters the atmosphere to strike its target.
As reported by blank” rel=”noopener”>CNN, experts who analyzed verified social media profile videos related to the attacks revealed that in its latest strike on Israel, Iran utilized multiple versions of the Shahab-3 ballistic missile.
According to Iranian media, Tehran used the Fattah-1 missile in its recent attack, a hypersonic missile capable of traveling at speeds up to Mach 5, or approximately 3,800 miles per hour.
What led to Iran’s strikes on Israel?
The Iranian government stated that its attack on Israel on October 1 was in retaliation for the killing of leaders from Hezbollah and Hamas, as well as a prominent Iranian commander involved in the Israel conflict. Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah and Brigadier General Abbas Nilforoushan were killed on September 27 when Israel bombed the building they were present in, located in the Lebanese capital, Beirut.
Although the timing and nature of the attack were not known beforehand, it came as a surprise.
For months, global powers have warned of “regional escalation” due to Israel’s ongoing war on Gaza, which has resulted in the deaths of 40,000 Palestinian lives.
The real conflict began with the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack on Israel, which sparked the war in Gaza and escalated tension throughout the Middle East, with significant consequences, including the potential weakening of Iran’s deterrence.
These attacks were part of Operation “blank” rel=”noopener”>True Promise 2,” as stated by the Islamic Revolution Guard Corps (
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