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Al-Samoud 2
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Al-Samoud (الصمود, alternately "Al-Samed", which means steadfastness in Arabic) of the former Iraq regime is a liquid-fuel missile which is essentially a scaled-down Scud, though parts are also derived from the Russian SA-2 'Guideline' surface-to-air missile. The rocket engine is from the SA-2 design and the thrust vector controls are from the Scud. The Al-Samoud system also included an Iraqi-designed mobile launcher similar to the Scud's that allowed for quick deployment. The missile carried a 300 kilogram warhead that was half high explosives and half protective steel shell.
On February 13, 2003, a UN panel reported that Iraq's Al-Samoud 2 missiles, disclosed by Iraq to weapons inspectors in December, have a range of 180 km, splitting opinion over whether they breach UNSCR 1441. The limit allowed by the UN is 150 km.
Iraq agreed to destroy the Al-Samoud 2 long range missiles, and as of March 2, 2003, 10 had been destroyed. The 2003 invasion of Iraq interrupted Iraq's destruction of the remainder. There were reports that some Al-Samoud 2 missiles had been fired at Kuwait during the invasion, but the most recent reports indicate that they were probably the original less-advanced Al-Samoud missiles instead or (at least in one case) US BGM-109 Tomahawk cruise missiles whose guidance system had malfunctioned.