In response to the Israeli aggression on Gaza, the Mujahideens’ attacks are going on in Gaza particularly. Along with old, conventional and locally made weapons, now modern weapons are also being used. For the first time on Wednesday (Dec 27, 2023), Al-Qassam brigade fighters used two sophisticated Russian weapons.
Al-Qassam Brigades announced that the brave Mujahideen used “SAM-18” rockets to target the Israeli occupation forces during the fighting. The rockets are targeting Israeli helicopters. Al-Qassam Military Communications said that such rockets were used twice a day, the first of which targeted a helicopter with a “SAM-18” missile east of the Jabalia camp in the north of Gaza and the second targeted the occupying army area in the al-Safawi area north of Gaza City.
It is an extraordinary additional weapon in the war against Netanyahu and the Israeli army, which has given the enemy sleepless nights and created a new terror on the enemy. This was the first time the Al-Qassam Brigade announced the use of such an air defense “shoulder missile”. It previously announced the use of a “SAM 7” model that has a range lower than “SAM 18”. Al-Qassam Brigades announced before Typhoon Al-Aqsa that it was using various air defense systems, including the Russian-made “Strela” and the indigenously developed “Mutabar 1” system.
The SAM-18 missile is an anti-aircraft missile, whose crew is the same person and is fired over the shoulder by a fighter. It has a range of up to 5.2 km and works against aerial targets from an altitude of 10 meters to an altitude of 3.5 kilometers. It was first used by the Soviet Union in 1983. Its speed is 800 meters per second. Its targets are all types of aircraft, including helicopters and other aircraft.
According to military experts, this missile has been directed by negative infrared rays through two channels, which works at a wavelength of 3.5 to 5 microns. The rocket weighs 11 kg, while its destructive warhead weighs no more than 2.2 kg. Al-Qassam Brigades revealed for the first time that it had put into service a locally developed “Mutabar 1” air defense system, which it used to counter Israeli aircraft during “Toofan Al-Aqsa”.
On October 15 and 25, Al-Qassam Brigades fired a “dusty” missile at an Israeli “Hormuz 450” drone over the air of the city of Khan Younis, not the first of its kind in the war. “Part of the Israeli state’s strategy to move to the next stage of the offensive is the use of Apache combat helicopters to support military infantry on the ground,” Jordanian strategic and military expert Mohammad al-Muqaddah told Quds media.
The Zionist stooges now decided to change the war strategy after the complete failure of the ground operation and the immense death of the personnel. For this, they will shell with helicopters instead of bombing with planes. Before launching this new strategy, they are collecting information from large-scale drones to assess the weapons of Gaza militants.
On the other hand, such drones are also being shot down by Gaza militants. On Thursday evening (Dec 28, 2023), Al-Qassam Brigades shot down a Zionist drone plane Skylark-2 in Tel al-Zatar. In addition to al-Qassam, the Mujahideen of Saraya al-Quds have also shot down drones in the past. Experts say that now if the next phase starts and helicopters are used, then this modern weapon will prove to be very deadly. One is that the speed of the helicopter is slow, the second is that it can attack only after reaching the ground, it is not possible to act through the helicopter from the heights of the air. A low-flying helicopter becomes an easy target for the SAM-8.
“The Apache helicopter is being handled by Russian (SAM) missiles. The Apache is equipped with 30 mm lethal anti-personnel machine guns and small anti-personnel missiles. Apache helicopters were used in Afghanistan and were hit by RPG shells and destroyed several times. The use of SAM-18 rockets was first announced by Al-Qassam Brigades on Wednesday. This Russian-made missile is more advanced than the SAM-9, which has appeared to Al-Qassam several times. It is shoulder-mounted and used in air defense situations, while its range reaches 5 kilometers.
Similarly, the Al-Qassam Brigades also announced the use of rocket Pro A (RPO-A) anti-fortification missiles for the first time on the same day (Wednesday). Rocket RPO-A is also a Russian-made and shoulder-fired launcher. It is a thermobaric missile shell, filled with pyrotechnic mixtures. During the Afghanistan war, it received the title “Weapon of Satan” and is similar to the operation of an anti-tank launcher called “Law”. It is used against tanks and strong military vehicles. It was first built by the Soviet Union in 1988. It weighs 22 kg, including the launcher, while the rocket weighs 6 kg and is 1.40 meters long, while the diameter is 140 mm. This rocket moves towards the target at a speed of 125 meters per second. It is also used to hit strong buildings and fronts in addition to tanks and is a destructive weapon. Which has been experienced repeatedly in wars.
The Hamas leadership met with Russian officials in Moscow last month. After this, some circles said that Russia has delivered modern weapons to Gaza. Until two days ago, no such modern Russian weapon had been discovered. Now on Wednesday, The SAM-8 and Pro A have been used for the first time by the militants. This reinforces the fact that Russia has delivered modern weapons to the partisans to avenge the Ukrainian war.
