Skip to main content

Iran unveils new air defense weaponry as regional tensions ramp up

1 min Mena Today

Iran unveiled new weaponry on Saturday including what it said was the locally made Arman anti-ballistic missile system and the Azarakhsh low-altitude air defense system, the official IRNA news agency reported.

In June Iran presented what officials described as its first domestically made hypersonic ballistic missile © Mena Today 

In June Iran presented what officials described as its first domestically made hypersonic ballistic missile © Mena Today 

 Iran unveiled new weaponry on Saturday including what it said was the locally made Arman anti-ballistic missile system and the Azarakhsh low-altitude air defense system, the official IRNA news agency reported.

The announcement came amid heightened tensions in the region, with Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi militants carrying out a string of attacks on vessels linked to the U.S., UK and Israel in the Red Sea in a show of solidarity with the Gaza Strip.

Gaza has been under military assault by Israel since Hamas's attacks on Israel's south on Oct. 7.

In response to the Houthi attacks, the U.S. has targeted sites inside Yemen as well as facilities of Iran-backed groups in Iraq and Syria. In turn, U.S. military bases have been attacked in Syria and Iraq. Israel has also struck Iranian targets in Syria.

Saturday’s unveiling ceremony of the two vehicle-mounted systems took place in the presence of Iranian Defense Minister Brigadier General Mohammad Reza Ashtiani.

"With the entry of new systems into the country's defense network, the air defense capability of the Islamic Republic of Iran will increase significantly," IRNA said.

It said the Arman missile system "can simultaneously confront six targets at a distance of 120 to 180 km", while the Azarakhsh missile system "can identify and destroy targets... up to a range of 50 km with four ready-to-fire missiles".

In June Iran presented what officials described as its first domestically made hypersonic ballistic missile, named Fattah, with a range of 1,400 km.

Editing by Jan Harvey

Related

Iran

Iran-US ceasefire framework reported, no official confirmation yet

The United States and Iran have reached an outline agreement to extend their ceasefire pending the approval of President Donald Trump, according to an Axios report, after Iran targeted a U.S. air base in Kuwait on Thursday in the wake of U.S. strikes on what Washington described as an Iranian drone operation.

Iran

The World Cup's most uncomfortable visa application

Iran's Football Federation has asked FIFA to help obtain multi-entry visas for its players so they can travel between their Mexican base camp and their matches in the United States, federation president Mehdi Taj announced Thursday.

Subscribe to our newsletter

Mena banner 4

To make this website run properly and to improve your experience, we use cookies. For more detailed information, please check our Cookie Policy.

  • Necessary cookies enable core functionality. The website cannot function properly without these cookies, and can only be disabled by changing your browser preferences.