E-Paper
New US missile, untested in combat, used for striking school in south Iran's Lamerd: Report
The February 28 attack in Lamerd occurred the same day as a US Tomahawk cruise missile struck a school in the city of Minab, killing 175 people.
New details have emerged in the US-Israeli bombing of an elementary school in the Iranian city of Lamerd that killed several people on the very first day of the war with Iran, including the use of a newly-developed ballistic missile that completed prototype testing just last year.
The February 28 attack occurred the same day as a US Tomahawk cruise missile struck a school in the city of Minab, several hundred kilometres away, killing 175 people.
According to a New York Times report, explosions and damage at the elementary school and the adjacent sports hall are consistent with a short-range ballistic missile called the Precision Strike Missile, or PrSM.
The weapon had been untested in combat before the strike, the report added.
Local officials cited in Iranian media said the strike at the school and other targets in the Southern Iranian city killed at least 21 people.
What is the PrSM missile reportedly used in the Lamerd strike?
The Precision Strike Missile (PrSM) is a US-made short-range ballistic missile which is designed to detonate just above its target and blast small tungsten pellets outward.
The weapon was developed and is manufactured by Lockheed Martin. It was originally a competition between Lockheed Martin and Raytheon to replace the ageing Army Tactical Missile System (ATACMS), but Lockheed Martin became the sole developer after Raytheon withdrew from the competition in early 2020.
According to a US Army release, the weapon completed its prototype testing last year. The Lamerd strike was the first time it was ever used in combat conditions.
Since the weapon is so new, it’s more difficult to assess whether the PrSM strikes in Lamerd were intentional, stemmed from a design flaw or manufacturing defect, or were the result of improper target selection.
Why is the PrSM weapon thought to be used in Lamerd strikes?
The NYT report cited videos that capture one of the strikes in a residential area about 275 metres from the elementary school, showing a weapon with a distinctive silhouette that matches the PrSM. The video shows the missile erupting mid-air in a large fireball, further cementing the theory that it was indeed the PrSM.
While another video cited in the report, from a camera near the school, did not show the missile, it is clear that the explosion occurred just above the structure.
Photos of the aftermath show both sites were pockmarked with holes, apparently from the tungsten pellets.
US military confirmed the use of PrSM in the Iran war
The use of the PrSM missile was confirmed by the US Central Command (CENTCOM), which on March 1 posted a video of a launch from the first 24 hours of the US-Iran war.
CENTCOM chief Admiral Brad Cooper said days later that the PrSM had been used in combat for the first time.
But whether the missile was used in the strikes in Lamerd hasn't been confirmed by the US military.
