Iran has unveiled a hypersonic missile dubbed the “Fattah” which it claims is impossible to shoot down, in a potentially major challenge to Israel and western leaders.

Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps revealed the new weapon, which can allegedly travel at 15 times the speed of sound, at a ceremony attended by Ebrahim Raisi, Iran’s President, and the regime’s top military chiefs. “Today we feel that the deterrent power has been formed...this power is an anchor of lasting security and peace for the regional countries,” said Raisi.

Iran also published a video demonstration that purported to show the missile in action, though much of it appeared to rely on computer-generated imagery. General Amir Ali Hajizadeh, the head of the Revolutionary Guard’s aerospace programme, claimed that “there exists no system that can rival or counter this missile”.

The assertion that the missile can both bypass and destroy air defence systems creates a significant security headache for Israel, Iran’s arch-foe in the region.

It will also cause deep concern among western leaders, who are increasingly wary of Iran’s growing military capabilities, in particular its new security pact with Russia.

An Iranian state TV report on the ceremony claimed that the missile can destroy “the enemy’s advanced anti-missile systems and is a big generational leap in the field of missiles”.

“It can bypass the most advanced anti-ballistic missile systems of the United States and the Zionist regime, including Israel’s Iron Dome,” the report added.

The Fattah system has a range of 1,400km, can move in and out of space and is capable of hitting targets in Israel in as little as 400 seconds.

New York Times News Service