Houthi - Nidal-2 / Falastanyin-2 / Palestine-2
"New Hypersonic Ballistic Missile"

On 03 June 2024, the Yemeni Armed Forces revealed a domestically manufactured ballistic missile named “Palestine”, although its specifications were not disclosed. The Ansar Allah leader, Abdul-Malik al-Houthi , said that the missile represents a qualitative leap in the group’s arsenal of weapons, noting that “it was manufactured taking into account the requirements of the fourth stage on the technical level and in terms of range.” Al-Houthi stressed, in a speech he gave about the latest developments in the Israeli aggression on Gaza and regional developments, that the Palestine missile "will have a great impact on the enemies," noting that it "is distinguished by its high technology, especially in confronting interception attempts in which several countries cooperate."

Footage was released on 05 June 2024 showing the missile being launched at a military target in Eilat, Israel. The footage published by the Houthis showed the launch of the Palestine missile from a mobile launch platform, accompanied by plumes of white smoke, indicating the use of solid fuel [hypergolic liquid propellants typically emit reddish-brown smoke]. The Houthis said the Palestine missile had a head painted in the shape of a Palestinian keffiyeh, supposedly confirming that it was locally made. The attack, which triggered air raid sirens in the Israeli occupation, did not result in any damage or injuries.

The distance from Sana'a (SAH) to Eilat (VDA) is 1150 miles / 1850 kilometers. Yemeni forces spokesman Brigadier General Yahya Saree said in a press conference that evening that “the Yemeni armed forces revealed the Palestine ballistic missile today for the first time, which successfully achieved its goal,” and he stressed that “we will continue to carry out our military operations in support of and in defense of the oppressed Palestinian people until the aggression stops and the siege on Gaza is lifted.”

The Palestine missile is similar in some respects to a missile that Iran has previously displayed and described as flying at hypersonic speeds. Iran unveiled the Fateh missile in 2023 and said it could reach speeds of Mach 15, or 15 times the speed of sound. It has described the missile’s range as 1,400 kilometers (870 miles). That’s slightly less than the distance to Eilat from Houthi-controlled territory in Yemen, but the missile could be developed to extend its range.

In March 2024, Russia’s state-run RIA Novosti news agency quoted an anonymous source as saying that the Houthis had a hypersonic missile. “While we cannot say with certainty what exact version the ‘Palestine’ corresponds to, we can say with a fair degree of certainty that it is an advanced, precision-guided (IRGC) solid-fuel missile supplied by Iran,” wrote Fabian Hinz, a missile expert and research fellow at the International Institute for Strategic Studies.

Asked about the similarity between the Palestine rocket and its own missiles, Iran’s mission to the United Nations told the Associated Press that Tehran “has not engaged in any activities contrary” to U.N. resolutions. “The military power in Yemen has grown since the beginning of the war. This is a fact rooted in the internal capability and prowess of the Ansar Allah group,” it added.

The Houthi Ansarullah military spokesman, Brigadier General Yahya Saree, said 15 September 2024 that their forces carried out a qualitative operation targeting a military site in Jaffa with a hypersonic missile. Saree explained that the missile covered a distance of 2,040 kilometers []not 2400 in 11 and a half minutes, and that it comes within the framework of what he called the fifth stage. The Houthis claimed they launched a "new hypersonic ballistic missile" targeting central Israel. The weapon's actual hypersonic capability has been questioned, as experts suggest it may have been an upgraded ballistic missile, likely supported by Iranian technology, rather than a true hypersonic missile with advanced maneuverability.

The actual distance between Sana'a (Sanaa International Airport - SAH) and Tel Aviv (Ben Gurion Airport - TLV) is 1281 miles / 2061 kilometers. The Houthi claim of 2400 km is difficult t substantiate. Given its range of 1,700 km (which most reports concur with), the Emad does not qualify for a “long-range” classification. In January 2021, Iran claimed to have hit a naval target in the Indian Ocean over 1,800 km away using an antiship Emad missile variant. The Ghadr-110 (Ashura) solid propellant missile with a range of (1,325 miles or 2,000 kilometers is not known to have a maneuvering reentry vehicle.

The initial investigation by the Israeli army stated: "One of the Arrow system's missiles hit the Yemeni missile without completely detonating it." The Israeli Army Radio claimed that "the missile launched from Yemen did not surprise the air defenses, and does not pose a new threat."

The Houthi name for this missile was not immediately reported. The next day, on 16 September 2024 the Yemen Armed Forces disclosed specifications of "Palestine 2" [Falastanyin-2] hypersonic missile, which was "aimed at a military site in the "Jaffa" [aka Tel Aviv] region of occupied Palestine. The military media released footage displaying the launch of the "Palestine 2" hypersonic missile, a recent addition to the Yemeni armed forces' missile arsenal. The projectile that was shown in the footage had a keffiyeh patterned tip and was decorated with Palestinian flags. In order to dispell any doubt, the missile was labeled "hypersonic" in English. The video showed it being launched from a deserted area. The missile, with a range of up to 2,150 km, operates on two-stage solid fuel, incorporates stealth technology, and can reach speeds of up to Mach 16. This makes it capable of evading the most advanced air defense systems, including the Iron Dome. The missile has a high maneuverability, enhancing its effectiveness in penetrating enemy air defenses. Or so it was said. While the missile nose cone had vanes typical of maneuvering reentry vehicles, it was a simple cone, unlike the bi-conic nose cones that are typical of Iranian maneuvering warheads.

Mawlid is an annual festival commemorating the birthday of Muhammad on the traditional date of 12 Rabi' al-Awwal, the third month of the Islamic calendar. A day central to the Sufi tradition of Sunni Islam, the Mawlid is also celebrated by Shia Muslims. But Ibn Taymiyyah : "The early Muslims did not do this despite the existence of a reason for it and the absence of any impediment to it. If it were purely good or preferable, the early Muslims, may God be pleased with them, would have been more deserving of it than us." Al-Shatibi said in his mention of the reprehensible innovations: “Among them is the commitment to specific methods and forms, such as the remembrance in the form of a group in one voice, and taking the day of the birth of the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him , as a holiday, and the like.” Taj al-Din al-Fakhani : “I do not know of any basis for this celebration in the Book or the Sunnah, nor is its practice transmitted from any of the scholars of the nation who are the role models in religion and adhere to the traces of the predecessors.”

That same day, the Leader of the Revolution, Sayyed Abdul-Malik Badr al-Din al-Houthi, praised the magnificent presence of the Yemeni people to commemorate the anniversary of the birth of the Prophet, which he described as the largest celebration on earth out of love for the Messenger of God on the day of his blessed birth. The Leader of the Revolution said in his speech today to the crowds in the squares of the occasion, "You have held the largest celebration on the face of the earth out of love, glorification, reverence, honor and affection for the most sublime, greatest, most perfect and most refined human being in the history of humanity, and joy, delight and happiness with God's grace, favor and mercy on human society by sending the best of His creation and the master of His messengers, Muhammad, may God bless him and his family, to save humanity and bring it out of darkness into the light."

He pointed out that the great, inspiring and guiding lessons of the jihadist path of the Messenger of Allah are sufficient to elevate Muslims from their unfortunate reality in this era, which has brought them to the point of submission and humiliation in the face of the Jews, upon whom Allah has afflicted humiliation and poverty.

The Leader of the Revolution reiterated the continuation of Yemeni military operations as long as the aggression and siege on Gaza and all of Palestine continue. He said, "Our operations will continue as long as the aggression and siege on Gaza continue, and our position is firm until occupied Palestine is cleansed from the clutches of the Zionist occupation. We escalate in every stage of escalation and coordinate with our Mujahideen brothers in Palestine and the axis of Jerusalem, Jihad and Resistance. We move to do more and what is coming is greater, God willing."

He added, "Today's operation, carried out by the missile force with a new ballistic missile with advanced technology, surpassed and penetrated all the protective belts that the Israeli enemy is sheltering behind and entrenching itself in, including multiple and diverse air defense systems, in addition to the long range, as it covered a distance estimated at 2,040 kilometers in eleven and a half minutes, within the framework of the fifth stage of escalation against the Israeli enemy and in support of the Palestinian people."

He stressed the steadfastness of the Yemeni people in their principled jihadist stance in carrying the banner of Islam and standing in the face of tyranny and arrogance, and within the framework of the jihadist responsibility of Muslims to support the oppressed Palestinian people against whom the Zionist Jewish enemies commit crimes of genocide every day. He addressed the entire Islamic nation, reminding them of the religious responsibility and sacred duty to support the Palestinian people, in compliance with the saying of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family): "Whoever wakes up not caring about the affairs of Muslims is not one of them, and whoever hears a caller calling, 'O Muslims' and does not respond, is not one of the Muslims."

The Houthi armed forces explained in a statement that the missile force carried out the operation with a new hypersonic ballistic missile that succeeded, with God's help, in reaching its target, and the enemy's defenses failed to intercept and confront it. The statement indicated that the missile caused a state of fear and panic among the Zionists, as more than two million Zionists headed to shelters for the first time in the history of the Israeli enemy. The following is the text of the statement:

"In the name of God, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. God Almighty said: {O Prophet, fight against the disbelievers and the hypocrites and be harsh upon them. And their refuge is Hell, and wretched is the destination.} God Almighty’s truth.

"In victory for the oppression of the Palestinian people and their Mujahideen, the missile force of the Yemeni Armed Forces, with the help of God Almighty, carried out a qualitative military operation through which it targeted a military target of the Israeli enemy in the Jaffa area in occupied Palestine.

"The operation was carried out with a new hypersonic ballistic missile that succeeded, with God's help, in reaching its target, and the enemy's defenses failed to intercept and confront it. It covered a distance of 2,040 km in 11 and a half minutes, causing a state of fear and panic among the Zionists, as more than two million Zionists headed to shelters for the first time in the history of the Israeli enemy.

"This operation comes within the framework of the fifth phase and was the culmination of the efforts of the heroes of the missile force who made tremendous efforts in developing missile technology to respond to the requirements of the battle and its challenges with the Zionist enemy and succeed in reaching its targets and bypassing all obstacles and interception systems on land and sea, including American, Israeli, and others.

"The obstacles of geography, the American-British aggression, and the monitoring, espionage and confrontation systems will not prevent dear Yemen from performing its religious, moral and humanitarian duty in victory for the Palestinian people. The Israeli enemy must expect more strikes and qualitative operations to come as we approach the first anniversary of the blessed October 7 operation, including the response to its criminal aggression on the city of Hodeidah, and the continuation of support operations for the oppressed Palestinian people. ...

"Allah is sufficient for us, and He is the best Disposer of affairs, the best Master and the best Supporter. Long live free, honorable and independent Yemen, and victory to Yemen and to all the free people of the nation."

Regarding the limited number of casualties caused by the missile in Israel, one observer said that regardless of the fact that the Yemeni missile that targeted Tel Aviv did not cause any Israeli casualties and fell in an area devoid of residents, it traveled a distance of two thousand kilometers and passed at least two American destroyers and a French frigate operating in the Red Sea without being detected, and penetrated the Israeli defense systems and the Iron Dome, and forced hundreds of thousands into shelters and fortified places.

The Israeli army said the missile traveled a distance of about 2,000 kilometers, took about 15 minutes to fly, and penetrated the airspace from the eastern border. The Israeli army said that a surface-to-surface missile launched from Yemen fell in an uninhabited forest area east of Tel Aviv. Shrapnel from the missile was scattered in an area 6 kilometers from Ben Gurion Airport east of Tel Aviv. the Israeli police said that the rocket fell in the town of Kfar Daniel, in an area near Ben Gurion Airport, adding that the rocket caused fires in forested areas and material damage to a main train station near the town of Modi'in.

The army said in a statement, "Following up on the warnings a short while ago in the central region of the country, we are talking about a surface-to-surface missile being launched from the east that fell in an open area without causing any injuries." In a second statement issued at around 7:00 a.m. (04:00 GMT), he indicated that "the missile was launched from Yemen," explaining that "the explosions heard in the last minutes were the result of interception missiles. The outcome of the interception operation is still under investigation."

The Al-Qassam Brigades blessed the missile strike carried out by the Ansar Allah group ( Houthis ) deep inside Israel, which it said targeted a military site in Jaffa with a "hypersonic" missile. Abu Obeida, the official spokesman for the Al-Qassam Brigades, said in tweets on his Telegram channel, "We congratulate the qualitative operation carried out by the Yemeni armed forces this morning, which targeted a military site near Tel Aviv," appreciating "the dear Yemeni people's stand alongside their brothers in Palestine and their readiness to make sacrifices for that."

Nine Israelis were injured as they fled after sirens sounded of a rocket attack on Tel Aviv, central Israel. A spokesman for a medical center in Israel announced that 9 Israeli casualties arrived to receive treatment for injuries they sustained while fleeing to shelters immediately after hearing the missile warnings , which sounded in morning in Tel Aviv and surrounding areas. Israeli media reported that sirens were heard in many residential areas in the center of the country, the Gush Dan area, Modi'in and Jerusalem, and the Home Front Command did not issue any exceptional instructions to the residents.

It is worth noting that the missile intercepted by the Arrow 2 system fell only 6 kilometers away from Ben Gurion International Airport in Tel Aviv. Following an Initial Investigation by the Israel Defense Force alongside the Air Force of the Medium-Range Ballistic Missile Attack by the Houthis in Yemen; it has been determined that the Missile was at least Partially Intercepted by the “Arrow-2/3” Anti-Ballistic Missile System, causing it to Break-Apart over Eastern Israel and for Debris, including the Warhead, to fall in the Ben Shemen Forest near Lod. The Investigation also showed that the launch of the Missile from Western Yemen was Immediately Detected by Israeli Early Warning Systems, and that its Track does not suggest it was a Hypersonic Ballistic Missile like was claimed by the Houthis. The Interceptor struck the Missile, but didn’t cause it to Explode and Disintegrate.

Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper said that the missile that was launched from Yemen and fell in central Israel for the first time in several months raised some difficult questions. But Yedioth Ahronoth provided mainly un-informed speculation, mal-premised on the assumption that this attack reprised the 03 June 2024 Jaffa cruise missile ttack. The Israeli newspaper asked : "Is it a cruise missile or a ballistic missile? Why was it discovered at a late stage? Did it penetrate from an unexpected direction? What were the results of the interception attempts?", noting that "the ballistic missile was supposed to be discovered and intercepted far from Israeli territory."

Yedioth Ahronoth explained that "detecting a cruise missile is more difficult because it flies at a low altitude and may mislead radar systems, but the patrols carried out by the Air Force using aircraft equipped with modern radars, especially the F-35, were supposed to detect this missile and shoot it down." Yedioth Ahronoth stated that "the cruise missile's flight path indicates that it did not take a direct route from Yemen, but may have been through penetration from an unexpected direction, a detour and a long route, perhaps through mountainous areas. Perhaps this is what made its detection difficult," asking: "After its discovery, were the anti-aircraft weapons able to intercept it, or was it not intercepted and missed its target?"

Channel 14 of Israeli TV reported this time that the initial research of the Israeli Air Force showed that all the defense missiles fired by the defense systems of this regime towards the Yemeni missile were unable to shoot it down. Israeli sources pointed out that more than 20 anti-aircraft interceptors were fired at this missile, but they failed to shoot down the Yemeni missile fired at Tel Aviv. Hadshot Bazaman announced that a large number of anti-missile missiles were fired at the Yemeni missile, but they failed to shoot down this missile. On the other hand, Gadi Eisenkot, the former chief of the joint staff of the Zionist army, in response to the firing of this missile and its hit in the middle of occupied Palestine, emphasized that the situation has changed dramatically and the army has injured nine people while trying to escape to Shelters in the middle of occupied Palestine have been reported after alarm bells were sounded in wide areas.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke at the opening of the government meeting about the missile fired from Yemen at Israel. Netanyahu said that "they should have already known that we exact a heavy price for any attempt to harm us." Netanyahu said "Anyone who needs a reminder is welcome to visit the port of Hodeidah," referring to the extensive Israeli attack against Houthi terror targets in Yemen about two months ago. "We are in a multi-front battle against Iran's axis of evil that strives to annihilate us," Netanyahu continued. "Anyone who attacks us will not escape our arm's reach. Hamas is already learning this through our resolute action that will lead to its destruction and the release all our captives."

Hypersonic missiles are sometimes defined as those that can exceed five times the speed of sound (Mach 5, or 6,125 km/h), but that is only part of their definition. Many vehicles have easily exceeded this speed since World War II , including intercontinental ballistic missiles (which can exceed 22,000 km/h, or roughly Mach 18). But modern hypersonic missiles can maneuver along their path at such speeds, and this in itself is a capability that many never imagined would ever be possible.

For any other ballistic missile, even if it is traveling at a speed greater than the speed of sound, the other party’s radars do not need to track it, but only study its path, given that its path is stable from the moment of launch, as it travels in a huge arc from the launch point, then through the atmosphere into space, then returns to the atmosphere again to hit its target. This expected path enables the opponent's radars to accurately determine the path of these missiles, and then launch their defensive arsenal accordingly.

As for the hypersonic missile, its ability to maneuver gives it several advantages. First, the missile will have the ability to bypass defensive interceptor missiles (and at the same time run faster than them), as well as bypass the radar coverage areas of the opponents, and go around various types of obstacles, whatever they may be, mountains, buildings, or any other barrier. The second, and most important, advantage is that the missile will be able to change its direction to low trajectories close to the ground while maintaining the same speed. Because of this, the early warning radar will be alerted very shortly before the strike, to the point that there may be nothing to do, as the time between sensing the missile's approach and the response of ground defenses is longer than the time needed for the missile to reach the target.

A Russian media report in March 2024 confirmed that the Houthis possess hypersonic missiles with glide capabilities at speeds exceeding 8 times the speed of sound, meaning about 10,000 kilometers per hour, which enables the missile to reach Israel in less than a quarter of an hour, just as happened recently. Unlike conventional ballistic missiles, which follow a fixed parabolic trajectory, hypersonic ballistic missiles may incorporate an enhanced glide system or other technologies that allow for increased maneuverability in flight, and can be viewed as a step toward more efficient hypersonic missiles such as the Russian Kinzhal or the Chinese Dongfeng-27.

Glide vehicles work in a simple way: a ballistic missile is launched out of the atmosphere, then separates from the winged glide vehicle to "glide" through the air until it reaches a low level relatively close to sea level at great speed, with the ability to maneuver. Previous Houthi products in this range suggest that it is a medium-range hypersonic missile, and in the final stages of its fall it has the ability to maneuver, which enabled it to deal with Israeli air defenses, which actually gives it some of the characteristics of current hypersonic technology.

Hypersonic missiles are still an emerging technology, possessed only by a few countries such as Russia, China, the United States, Iran and several others. The Houthis’ possession of this technology, or at least the beginning of its development, means a major change in the form of conflict in the region, because there is no defense system yet that can completely neutralize these missiles.