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According to the [[United States Department of State|US State Department]], the missile was actually an Iranian [[Qiam 1]].<ref name="USUN: Qiam 1">{{cite web |title=Press Release: Ambassador Haley on Weapons of Iranian Origin Used in Attack on Saudi Arabia |date=7 November 2017 |publisher= United States Mission to the United Nations |url= https://usun.state.gov/remarks/8090}}</ref> Saudi Arabia's [[Ministry of Culture and Information]] also supplied the [[Associated Press]] with pictures from a military briefing of what it claimed were components from the intercepted missile bearing Iranian markings matching those on other pictures of the Qiam 1.<ref name="WaPo 1"/> Joint Forces Command of the Arab Coalition detailed the evidence.<ref>http://www.janes.com/article/75786/dossier-shows-iranian-missile-that-landed-in-saudi-arabia</ref> There have also been reports of previous attempts by Iran to send missiles to Yemen.<ref name="WaPo 1"/>
According to the [[United States Department of State|US State Department]], the missile was actually an Iranian [[Qiam 1]].<ref name="USUN: Qiam 1">{{cite web |title=Press Release: Ambassador Haley on Weapons of Iranian Origin Used in Attack on Saudi Arabia |date=7 November 2017 |publisher= United States Mission to the United Nations |url= https://usun.state.gov/remarks/8090}}</ref> Saudi Arabia's [[Ministry of Culture and Information]] also supplied the [[Associated Press]] with pictures from a military briefing of what it claimed were components from the intercepted missile bearing Iranian markings matching those on other pictures of the Qiam 1.<ref name="WaPo 1"/> Joint Forces Command of the Arab Coalition detailed the evidence.<ref>http://www.janes.com/article/75786/dossier-shows-iranian-missile-that-landed-in-saudi-arabia</ref> There have also been reports of previous attempts by Iran to send missiles to Yemen.<ref name="WaPo 1"/>

On 25 March 2018, the Houthis fired three missiles at Riyadh, including at least one Burkan-2H. An Egyptian was killed in the incident. Saudi sources claimed that he was killed by debris from an intercepted Houthi missile,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-saudi-security/saudi-arabia-shoots-down-missiles-from-yemen-one-dead-from-debris-idUSKBN1H10YB|title=Saudi Arabia shoots down missiles from Yemen; one dead from debris|date=25 March 2018|publisher=Reuters|access-date=26 March 2018}}</ref> but this is disputed, with analysis of videos from the scene appearing to show a Saudi [[MIM-104 Patriot|Patriot]] missile malfunctioning and crashing into a residential neighbourhood.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://theaviationist.com/2018/03/26/scary-videos-show-malfunctioning-saudi-patriot-missile-fired-to-intercept-houthi-ballistic-missile-hitting-capital-city-riyadh-instead/|title=VIDEOS SHOW MALFUNCTIONING SAUDI PATRIOT MISSILE FIRED TO INTERCEPT HOUTHI SRBM HITTING CAPITAL CITY RIYADH INSTEAD|date=26 March 2018|first=David|last=Cenciotti|publisher=The Aviationist|access-date=26 March 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.haaretz.com/middle-east-news/saudi-patriot-missile-malfunctions-crashes-in-residential-area-1.5940630|title=Saudi Arabia's U.S.-made Patriot Missile Defense System 'Malfunctions,' Crashes in Residential Area|date=26 March 2018|publisher=Haaretz|access-date=26 March 2018}}</ref>


== See also ==
== See also ==

Revision as of 19:27, 26 March 2018

Burkan 2
TypeBallistic missile, Mobile MRBM
Place of originYemen or Iran
Service history
In serviceFebruary 2017[1][2]
Used byHouthis in Yemen
Specifications
Diameter0.88 metres (2.9 ft)[3]
Engineliquid propellant rocket
Operational
range
≥850 kilometres (530 mi)[4]
Arabic name
Personal
(Ism)		Burkan 2-H
H-بركان ٢

The Burkan-2H (Arabic H-بركان ٢), or Volcano-2H[5] (also spelled as Borkan H2[6] and Burqan 2H[7]) is a mobile short-range ballistic missile used by the Houthis militants in Yemen. The Volcano H-2 was first launched in July 2017.[8] It is related to the Scud missile family.[9]

Development

The Burkan-2H was first revealed to the international community when it was launched at Saudi Arabia on 22 July 2017.[8] According to Saudi Arabia the missiles are of Iranian origin, with USAF Lt. General Jeffrey L. Harrigian, Commander, Air Force's Central Command in Qatar, agreeing.[4][9]

Design

The Burkan-2H is a member of the Scud family.[9] Analysts identify it as being based on the Iranian Qiam 1/Scud-C,[10][11] Iranian Shahab-2/Scud-C,[10] or Scud-D[12] missile.

The shape of the warhead is a "baby-bottle" design, which can shift the center of gravity and center of pressure to compensate for changes in payload weight from cone-shaped warheads; can increase drag, increasing stability during reentry (at the expense of range), and potentially increase accuracy; and can increase the terminal velocity of the warhead, making it harder to intercept.[13][14][15] Similarly shaped warheads are used on Iran's Shahab-3 and Qiam 1 missiles.[14]

Operational History

The first recorded launch of the Burkan-2H was on 22 July 2017. Houthis contend that the missile successfully hit the region of Yanbu in Saudi Arabia and caused a major fire at an Aramco oil refinery.[8] The Saudi government disputes this claim, stating that the fire was instead caused by a malfunctioning generator.[16]

On 4 November 2017, Saudi Arabia claimed to have intercepted a Burkan-2H over its capital, Riyadh, with a MIM-104 Patriot. The missile was reportedly aimed at King Khalid International Airport.[7] A December 2017 report in the New York Times casts doubt on the official Saudi claim that this missile was successfully shot down.[17] The article cites a team of experts who allege that the missile's warhead was not intercepted and actually detonated near the airport. The research team reviewed photo and video evidence, which led them to conclude that the missile-defense system had failed; the MIM-104 interceptor either missed the Volcano H-2 entirely or struck only the rear propulsion segment of the H-2 after it had separated from the warhead.

On 19 December 2017, the Burkan-2H was launched targeting the capital of Saudi Arabia Riyadh, it is said that their objective was to take out senior officials that were all expected to meet at Saudi Defense Headquarters; however, Saudi Arabia’s claimed that they were able to intercept the ballistic missile. [18] An independent analysis by IHS Jane’s found no evidence that the missiles had been shot down.[19]

According to the US State Department, the missile was actually an Iranian Qiam 1.[20] Saudi Arabia's Ministry of Culture and Information also supplied the Associated Press with pictures from a military briefing of what it claimed were components from the intercepted missile bearing Iranian markings matching those on other pictures of the Qiam 1.[11] Joint Forces Command of the Arab Coalition detailed the evidence.[21] There have also been reports of previous attempts by Iran to send missiles to Yemen.[11]

On 25 March 2018, the Houthis fired three missiles at Riyadh, including at least one Burkan-2H. An Egyptian was killed in the incident. Saudi sources claimed that he was killed by debris from an intercepted Houthi missile,[22] but this is disputed, with analysis of videos from the scene appearing to show a Saudi Patriot missile malfunctioning and crashing into a residential neighbourhood.[23][24]

See also

References

  1. ^ "Gulf of Aden Security Review". Critical Threats. February 6, 2017. Retrieved November 6, 2017.
  2. ^ "Military Force Fires a Long-Range Ballistic Missile at Base in Riyadh [القوة الصاروخية تستهدف بصاروخ باليستي بعيد المدى قاعدة عسكرية بالرياض]". Saba Net. February 6, 2017. Retrieved November 6, 2017.
  3. ^ "Missile Force Launches New Missile on Saudi Territory". Almotamar.net. September 2, 2016. Retrieved November 11, 2017.
  4. ^ a b "Saudis accuse Iran of 'direct aggression' over Yemen missile". BBC. November 7, 2017. Retrieved November 11, 2017.
  5. ^ Edroos, F (November 5, 2017). "Yemen's Houthis fire ballistic missile at Riyadh". Al Jazeera. Retrieved November 6, 2017.
  6. ^ "Retaliatory missile launched at Riyadh airport was Borkan H2, Yemen says". PressTV. November 5, 2017. Retrieved November 6, 2017.
  7. ^ a b Lister, T; Albadran, A; Al-Masmari, H; Sirgany, SE; Levenson, E (November 4, 2017). "Saudi Arabia intercepts ballistic missile over capital". CNN. Retrieved November 6, 2017.
  8. ^ a b c "Yemen targets Saudi oil refinery with ballistic missile". Yemen Press. July 23, 2017. Retrieved November 6, 2017.
  9. ^ a b c Gambrell, Jon (November 10, 2017). "US Air Force official: Missile targeting Saudis was Iranian". ABC News. Retrieved November 10, 2017.
  10. ^ a b Brügge, Norbert (November 10, 2017). "The Soviet "Scud" Missile Family". Retrieved November 10, 2017.
  11. ^ a b c Gambrell, Jon (November 11, 2017). "Q&A: US, Saudi Arabia accuse Iran over Yemen missile launch". Washington Post. Retrieved November 11, 2017.
  12. ^ Lewis, Jeffrey (October 27, 2016). "Yemen's Burkan-1 Missile". Arms Control Wonk. Retrieved November 11, 2017.
  13. ^ Rubin, Uzi (24 August 2008). "Iran's New "Baby Bottle" Shihab". Middle East Missile Monitor. Retrieved 11 November 2017.
  14. ^ a b "Qiam 1". Center for Strategic and International Studies. Retrieved 13 November 2017.
  15. ^ Eisenstadt, Michael (November 2016). "Research Notes" (PDF). The Washington Institute for Near East Policy. Retrieved 14 November 2017.
  16. ^ "Saudi refinery operations not affected by transformer fire". Al Arabiya English. July 24, 2017. Retrieved November 6, 2017.
  17. ^ "Did American Missile Defense Fail in Saudi Arabia?". The New York Times. 4 December 2017. Retrieved 4 December 2017.
  18. ^ http://www.cnn.com/2017/12/19/middleeast/saudi-yemen-missile/index.html
  19. ^ Binnie, Jeremy (January 26, 2018). "Third Burkan-2H missile shows no sign of Saudi intercept". Jane's Information Group. A Burkan-2H ballistic missile that was shown to a television news team showed no indication it had been intercepted by a Saudi Patriot air defence system as claimed.
  20. ^ "Press Release: Ambassador Haley on Weapons of Iranian Origin Used in Attack on Saudi Arabia". United States Mission to the United Nations. 7 November 2017.
  21. ^ http://www.janes.com/article/75786/dossier-shows-iranian-missile-that-landed-in-saudi-arabia
  22. ^ "Saudi Arabia shoots down missiles from Yemen; one dead from debris". Reuters. 25 March 2018. Retrieved 26 March 2018.
  23. ^ Cenciotti, David (26 March 2018). "VIDEOS SHOW MALFUNCTIONING SAUDI PATRIOT MISSILE FIRED TO INTERCEPT HOUTHI SRBM HITTING CAPITAL CITY RIYADH INSTEAD". The Aviationist. Retrieved 26 March 2018.
  24. ^ "Saudi Arabia's U.S.-made Patriot Missile Defense System 'Malfunctions,' Crashes in Residential Area". Haaretz. 26 March 2018. Retrieved 26 March 2018.
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