Iran has reported the test of two additional indigenous
missiles.
Officials said the missiles were tested on Tuesday during the Holy
Prophet exercise that has been taking place in the Gulf. They said one
missile has already been deployed while the other was preparing to undergo
serial production.
Iran provided few details of either missile. One was identified as the
Kowsar, described as a land-based weapon that could evade radar detection.
Rear Adm. Mohammed Ibrahim Dehqani, a spokesman for the Iranian
exercise, said Kowsar could be fired from either land or sea-based
platforms. He said the missile, designed to destroy surface vessels,
contained an advanced fire control system that resists electronic jamming.
"Its smart warhead leads it to the target and helps the missile to avoid
any electronic jam in the air and it also manages to escape from being hit,"
Dehqani said.
Dehqani did not disclose the range of Kowsar.
The other missile tested on Tuesday was identified as the Misaq. Dehqani
described Misaq as a shoulder-fired anti-aircraft missile already deployed
on naval vessels.
"The speed of the missile is to the extent that no radar can detect it
and its high speed protects it completely from being targeted in case of
being detected by other warning systems," Dehqani said.
So far, Iran has announced tests of five missiles, including two
torpedos, during Holy Prophet. Officials said the weapons, whose development
has been overseen by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, could help deter
any U.S.-led attack on Iranian nuclear facilities.
"The missile command of the IRGC's naval force, through positioning
various types of surface-to-sea missiles, is able, while defending the
coastlines and islands, to confront any foreign invasion," Islamic
Revolutionary Guard Corps commander Maj. Gen. Yahya Rahim Safavi said.
