Iran's massive missile and drone barrage targeting Israel over the weekend is similar to Russian tactics used in frequent strikes on Ukraine, according to a new assessment, after Iran launched its first-ever direct strike from its own territory into Israel.
"Iran's use of drones and missiles shows how Iran is learning from the Russians to develop increasingly dangerous and effective strike packages against Israel," the U.S. think tank, the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) said on Saturday.
Russia has launched thousands of missile and drone strikes on Ukraine in nearly 26 months of all-out war in the country. It has fired a variety of missiles and uncrewed aerial vehicles (UAVs) at Ukraine, including Iranian-designed Shahed explosive drones.
"These Russian strikes have attempted to determine the optimal package to penetrate Western air and missile defenses," the ISW assessed.
Iran launched a large-scale aerial attack on Israel overnight, describing the barrage as retaliation for an attack on the Iranian consulate in Syria on April 1. Several members of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps were killed, but Israel has not officially commented.
Tehran said that it carried out "series of military strikes on Israeli's military bases" as part of its "its inherent right of self-defense" against what it termed "Israel's recurring military aggressions."
Iran fired 170 explosive drones, upwards of 30 cruise missiles and more than 120 ballistic missiles towards Israel, said Israel Defense Forces' (IDF) Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari. The IDF said a "small number of hits were identified," including "minor damage" to a military base in southern Israel.
U.S. Defense Secretary, Lloyd Austin, said on Saturday that U.S. forces in the Middle East had intercepted "dozens" of missiles and drones heading for Israel from Iran, Iraq, Syria and Yemen. U.S. President Joe Biden said the U.S. military had moved aircraft and ballistic missile defense destroyers to the region over the past week, adding the U.S. "helped Israel take down nearly all of the incoming drones and missiles."
The U.S. military has also been heavily involved in intercepting Houthi rebel drone and missile attacks from Yemen in the Red Sea in recent months.
Iran's strikes give Tehran chances to evaluate different attack strategies, understanding how "they can evade and overwhelm U.S. air and maritime defenses more effectively," the think tank said.
The U.S. provides both Israel and Ukraine with air defense capabilities. Kyiv has said it is struggling to cover its territory with its existing equipment in the face of sustained Russian missile and drone attacks. Moscow has consistently targeted Ukraine's energy and military infrastructure.
On Saturday, Germany said it would transfer an additional Patriot system to Ukraine. The U.S.-made Patriot is considered the gold-standard of air defense, credited with intercepting some of Russia's most advanced missiles.
Early on Sunday, Ukraine's air force said Russia had launched 10 Shahed kamikaze drones and four anti-aircraft guided missiles at Ukraine overnight.
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About the writer
Ellie Cook is a Newsweek security and defense reporter based in London, U.K. Her work focuses largely on the Russia-Ukraine ... Read more
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