[nonmember]
[/nonmember][ismember]
[/ismember]
Israel believes Hezbollah also has acquired a “few dozen” Scud D missiles with a range of 700 kilometers stashed in the northern Bekaa. The Lebanese Daily Star reports.
However, the Scud D is a logistical headache for Hezbollah compared to other rocket systems. Scuds are liquid-fueled which makes for a lengthy, complicated and potentially hazardous launching process compared to solid-fueled alternatives. They also require dedicated truck-sized launch platforms that are harder to smuggle into Lebanon, hide and employ without being spotted. The solid-fueled Fateh A-110s and M600s, on the other hand, are thought to be launched from converted shipping containers mounted on the backs of trucks. The roof of the shipping container flips open allowing the launch rail to be raised and the missile fired.
Most targets in Israel worthy of Hezbollah’s attention are found in the northern half of the country where the bulk of the population lives and where most of Israel’s military facilities, businesses and industries are located. There is relatively little worth striking in Israel south of a line drawn between Ashdod and Jerusalem, a distance of 143 kilometers from the Lebanese border, which puts the main target bank well within reach of the M600s, let alone fourth-generation Fatehs.
The one exception south of the Ashdod-Jerusalem line is Israel’s nuclear reactor at Dimona. If Israel were to launch an attack against Iran’s nuclear facilities, a retaliatory Scud strike by Hezbollah against Dimona may have been suitably reciprocal and possibly worth the logistical challenges posed by the missile. But if Hezbollah really has acquired the fourth-generation Fateh missile, the party would seem to no longer require the cumbersome Scuds for the purpose of attacking Dimona.
[nonmember]You are invited to join our Gold Membership to gain access to the full version of this analysis[nonmember]
