Kheibar Shekan

Kheibar Shekan
TypeMedium-range ballistic missile
Place of originIran
Service history
Used byIslamic Republic of Iran
WarsWar on ISIL
2024 Iran–Israel conflict
2026 Iran war
Production history
ManufacturerIRGCASF
Produced2022
Specifications
PropellantSolid fuel engine

Kheibar Shekan (Persian: خیبرشکن; also transliterated Kheybar Shekan or Kheibarshekan) is an Iranian solid-fuel medium-range ballistic missile operated by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Aerospace Force. It is part of the Fateh-110 missile family and was unveiled in February 2022. The missile is propelled by solid fuel and its warhead is maneuverable in terminal phase with the objective of evading air defenses. The range is 1450 km, or about 900 mi.

Kheibar Sheken missiles have been used throughout the 2026 Iran war. American newspaper WSJ described the Kheibar Shekan as "cheap, accurate and lethal," as the "workhorse" of Iran's ballistic missile forces, and as "Iran's best missile."

Name

"Kheibar" refers to a fort near Medina, Khaybar, which was populated by Arabian Jews and was in 628 CE conquered by Muslims led by the prophet Muhammad. "Shekan" means "shatterer" or "destroyer". More idiomatically, the name can be translated as "fortress breaker."

Specifications

The Kheibar Shekan missile uses solid fuel and, according to Iran, weighs less than similar missiles; Iran did not disclose the type it was being compared against. It is considered part of the Fateh-110 family of missiles. It was unveiled in February 2022 at a ceremony attended by Iranian military commanders on the 43rd anniversary of the Iranian Revolution.

Dimensions

Kheibar Shekan in 2023

The dimensions of the Kheibar Shekan missile have not been not disclosed. Two Iranian news websites estimated the dimensions as ~10.5 meters long, 80 centimeters in diameter, and 4500 kg weight. A German source estimated the length at 11.8m and the width as 0.81m. Its warhead is high explosive type and its body is made of the same composite materials as the Raad-500 missile. According to IRGC-affiliated media, an advantage of the Kheibar Shekan missile over others is its smaller size, allowing more to be stored in the limited space of underground missile bases.

Warhead

At unveiling in 2022, the warhead weight was not disclosed. Islamic World News, an Iran-aligned media outlet, estimated the warhead weight as 500 kg. IISS reported a warhead weight of 550kg in 2025. In 2026, the WSJ reported a payload of 990-1300 lbs (~450-600 kg).

According to IRGC-affiliated media, the prominent nose fins of the re-entry vehicle increase the maneuverability after re-entering the atmosphere and allow for faster and more complex maneuvers to attempt to defeat missile defenses. Iranian state media estimates the velocity of the warhead at the moment of impact at Mach 2-3. The reentry vehicle's configuration is of the tri-conic type, which maintains the warhead's stability during re-entry. According to Iranian state media sources the missile has achieved more maneuverability by making engineering compromises and increasing the drag. According to the WSJ, some Kheybar Shekan variants have a warhead-bearing nose section with a small engine that can adjust trajectory during the terminal phase of flight. Iran had earlier claimed such a maneuvering capability at the missile's introduction in 2022.

Launch vehicle

According to IRNA, the Kheibar Shekan missile can use a wide range of launchers. The launcher used for the missile is mounted on a 10-wheel commercial chassis that can also be camouflaged as a commercial vehicle.

Casting of missile motors takes place at Iran's Shahroud missile facility in Semnan Province.

Operational history

Iran has believed to have supplied the missile to the Houthis. In a military parade in Yemen on 21 September 2022, the Houthis unveiled a missile called "Hatim" of similar appearance to the Kheibar Shekan.

The first use in combat was on 15 January 2024, when the IRGC used four Kheibar Shekan missiles to strike a reported Islamic State target in Idlib governorate in northwestern Syria. The missiles were fired from a location near Darkhoveyn in southern Khuzestan, about 1250 km away. Tehran stated that this was their longest missile strike. The New York Times said that both the range and accuracy were notable. In 2024, Bloomberg News described the Kheibar Shekan as the most advanced Iranian missile with the range to strike Israel.

On 1 October 2024, Iran launched 181 ballistic missiles at Israel in response to Israel's assassination of Hassan Nasrallah and IRGC commander Abbas Nilforoushan on 27 September. Kheibar Shekan missiles were among those reportedly used in the attack. In response, on 26 October 2024, Israel struck military targets in Iran, including multiple facilities used to manufacture and store the solid propellant fuel for Kheibar Shekan missiles.

Kheibar Shekan missiles were used extensively in the 2026 Iran war. Kheibar Shekan missiles were "likely" used in an attack on Muwaffaq Salti Air Base in Jordan that killed 3 American servicemembers on 17 July 2026. According to a Wall Street Journal report, Iran used the missile in complex attacks involving different flight paths, manoeuvres, and speeds intended to confuse air defence systems. Iran's tactics and deployment of Kheibar Shekan missiles evolved through the war, reported the WSJ, and some of the missiles successfully evaded US defenses.

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Jeremy Binnie (10 February 2022). "Iran unveils Kheibar Shekan ballistic missile". www.janes.com. Retrieved 2026-08-31.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Cloud, David; Holliday, Shelby (2026-07-25). "Cheap, Accurate and Lethal: Iran's Best Missile Is Getting More Dangerous". Wall Street Journal.
  3. ↑ "مذاکره در اتریش و رونمایی موشک در ایران؛ تفسیر رسانه‌های اسرائیل از نام "خیبرشکن"" [Negotiations in Austria and the unveiling of missiles in Iran; Israeli media interprets the name "Kheibar Shekan"] (in Persian). 9 February 2022. Retrieved 21 February 2022.
  4. ↑ "Why Iran Keeps Firing This Missile at U.S. Bases | WSJ Equipped - YouTube". www.youtube.com. 31 July 2026. Retrieved 2026-08-31.
  5. ↑ Seth J. Frantzman (February 9, 2022). "Did Iran name its new missile after anti-Jewish battle? - analysis". www.jpost.com. Retrieved 2026-08-31.
  6. ↑ "Iran fires Kheibar Shekan missile for the first time at Israel, shows Trump US airstrikes on its nuclear sites not effective". m.economictimes.com. 22 June 2025. Retrieved 2026-08-31.
  7. ↑ "سپاه پاسداران از 'موشک بالستیک با برد ۱۴۵۰ کیلومتر' رونمایی کرد" [The Revolutionary Guards unveiled a 'ballistic missile with a range of 1450 km']. BBC News فارسی (in Persian). Retrieved 21 February 2022.
  8. 1 2 3 "دانش نظامی: موشک راهبردی خیبر شکن – تحولات جهان اسلام" (in Persian). Retrieved 2026-06-28.
  9. 1 2 3 4 5 "جدیدترین موشک ایرانی را بیشتر بشناسید" [Learn more about the latest Iranian missile] (in Persian). Retrieved 21 February 2022.
  10. ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20240412213135/https://www.b14643.de/Spacerockets/Specials/Fattah-misile/index.htm [bare URL]
  11. ↑ "«خیبرشکن» جدیدترین موشک ایران چه ویژگی‌هایی دارد؟ برد موشک‌های سوخت جامد تاکتیکی به اسرائیل رسید" [What are the features of Iran's latest "Khyber Breaker" missile? - The range of tactical solid fuel missiles reached Israel] (in Persian). 13 February 2022. Retrieved 21 February 2022.
  12. ↑ Hinz, Fabian (18 June 2025). "Israel's attack and the limits of Iran's missile strategy". IISS.
  13. ↑ ""خیبرشکن" برای عبور از سامانه‌های پدافندی طراحی شده است" ["Kheibar Shekan" is designed to pass through defense systems] (in Persian). 13 February 2022. Retrieved 21 February 2022.
  14. ↑ Hinz, Fabian (14 July 2023). "Removing the hype from Iran's 'hypersonic' conqueror". Archived from the original on 2023-07-19.
  15. ↑ www.irna.ir https://www.irna.ir/news/84648509/%D8%AE%DB%8C%D8%A8%D8%B1%D8%B4%DA%A9%D9%86-%D8%AC%D8%AF%DB%8C%D8%AF%D8%AA%D8%B1%DB%8C%D9%86-%D9%85%D9%88%D8%B4%DA%A9-%D8%A7%DB%8C%D8%B1%D8%A7%D9%86-%DA%86%D9%87-%D9%88%DB%8C%DA%98%DA%AF%DB%8C-%D9%87%D8%A7%DB%8C%DB%8C-%D8%AF%D8%A7%D8%B1%D8%AF-%D8%A8%D8%B1%D8%AF-%D9%85%D9%88%D8%B4%DA%A9-%D9%87%D8%A7%DB%8C. Retrieved 2026-06-28. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  16. ↑ "تمام خاک اسرائیل و همه پایگاه های آمریکا در منطقه در تیررس موشک های قدرتمند ایران! - نیوزین" [All Israeli territory and all US bases in the region are within range of Iran's powerful missiles! - Newsin] (in Persian). 13 February 2022. Retrieved 21 February 2022.
  17. ↑ "تمام خاک اسرائیل و همه پایگاه های آمریکا در منطقه در تیررس موشک های قدرتمند ایران!" [All Israeli territory and all US bases in the region are within range of Iran's powerful missiles!] (in Persian). 14 February 2022. Retrieved 21 February 2022.
  18. ↑ "Iran Update Evening Special Report". Institute for the Study of War. 11 March 2026. Archived from the original on 2026-03-12.
  19. 1 2 "Iran Strikes Showcase High-Tech Khaibar-Shekan Missile Designed to Hit Israel". Bloomberg. 17 January 2024. Archived from the original on 2024-01-17.
  20. ↑ Binnie, Jeremy (26 September 2022). "Yemeni rebels unveil new missiles in largest parade to date". Janes.
  21. 1 2 "Before the Bombardment: Revisiting Iran's January 2024 Missile Strikes on Syria, Iraq, and Pakistan". Iran Watch. 29 April 2024. Archived from the original on 2024-05-19.
  22. ↑ "Iran launches missile strikes in Iraq and Syria citing security threats". Al Jazeera. 16 January 2024.
  23. ↑ Jhaveri, Ashka; Parry, Andie; Soltani, Amin; Braverman, Alexandra; Tyson, Kathryn; Mills, Peter; Carl, Nicholas (17 January 2024). "Iran Update". Institute for the Study of War. Archived from the original on 2025-09-09.
  24. ↑ Jakes, Lara; Sanger, David E. (18 January 2024). "Iran's New Missile Fleet: Part Deterrent, Part Sales Pitch". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 18 January 2024. Both the range and the apparent accuracy seized the attention of national security officials in Europe and Israel, as well as outside experts who track Iran's technological advances.
  25. ↑ Summer Said; Benoit Faucon (3 November 2024). "Iran Tells Region 'Strong and Complex' Attack Coming on Israel". wsj.com. Wall Street Journal.
  26. ↑ Kasapoğlu, Can (2024-10-30). "Assessing the Political and Military Scope of Israel's Strikes on Iran". MENA Defense Intelligence Digest. Washington D.C.: Hudson Institute.
  27. ↑ "'100 Targets Hit': IRGC Unleashes Missiles On Israel After Larijani Assassination". The Times of India.
  28. ↑ Cloud, David S.; Peled, Anat; Czerny, Milàn (22 July 2026). "Iran Shows Its Ballistic Missiles Are Still a Force to Reckon with". Wall Street Journal.