Ahmed Kamel – Egypt Daily News
Israel is reported to have used a little-known air-launched ballistic missile capable of briefly exiting the Earth’s atmosphere in the strike that killed Iran’s supreme leader, in what analysts describe as a highly coordinated and technologically sophisticated operation.
According to defense reporting and regional sources, the weapon identified in the attack was the Blue Sparrow missile, an Israeli-developed system with an estimated range of about 1,240 miles. The missile follows a quasi-ballistic trajectory that allows it to leave the atmosphere before descending at high speed toward its target, a flight profile that complicates interception efforts.
Long cylindrical debris believed to be from the missile has reportedly been discovered in western Iraq along what analysts say would be a plausible flight path toward Iran, though independent verification of the wreckage remains limited.
The Blue Sparrow is part of Israel’s Sparrow family of air-launched missiles, which also includes the Black Sparrow and Silver Sparrow. The systems were originally designed to simulate Scud-type ballistic missiles similar to those fired at Israel by Iraq during the 1991 Gulf War. Over time, however, the Blue Sparrow has reportedly been adapted from its original role as a target missile into an offensive air-to-surface weapon.
Military experts note that its ability to exit and re-enter the atmosphere at high speed reduces warning time and increases the difficulty for air defenses to intercept it, making it suitable for high-value, time-sensitive strikes in heavily defended environments while keeping launch aircraft outside the most dangerous airspace.
Sources familiar with the operation said planning for the strike had been underway for months. The timeline was reportedly accelerated after intelligence indicated that Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, would attend an in-person meeting on Saturday morning.
Israeli aircraft, including F-15 fighter jets, are said to have launched around 7:30 a.m. local time, reaching their firing positions roughly two hours later. The first wave of strikes reportedly began at about 9:40 a.m., with at least 30 precision munitions aimed at the compound.
Intelligence preparation is believed to have played a significant role. Reports indicate Israel’s signals intelligence unit, Unit 8200, had spent years monitoring security patterns around Khamenei, including tracking members of his protective detail and exploiting surveillance infrastructure near the compound.
According to accounts of the operation, communications around the site were disrupted shortly before the strike, complicating efforts by aides to coordinate a response. Social media footage later showed smoke rising from multiple locations in Tehran, including the area of the supreme leader’s residence.
By early evening, preliminary damage assessments indicated significant destruction within the compound, with multiple buildings reportedly hit. Iranian state media confirmed Khamenei’s death early the following morning.
Israeli officials have said roughly 2,000 bombs were dropped in the first 30 hours of the broader campaign against Iranian targets. The United States has also acknowledged deploying new weapons systems in the operation, including the first reported combat use of the Precision Strike Missile, which has an estimated range of about 310 miles.
US forces additionally launched Tomahawk cruise missiles and HIMARS rocket strikes, hitting more than 1,000 targets in the opening phase of the campaign, according to US Central Command. General Brad Cooper later said US operations had struck approximately 2,000 targets inside Iran and destroyed 17 Iranian vessels.
Israel has continued conducting strikes not only inside Iran but also against Hezbollah positions in Lebanon, raising concerns among regional observers about the risk of a wider and prolonged conflict.
The human toll has mounted rapidly. The Human Rights Activists News Agency reported that the death toll in Iran had climbed to nearly 1,100 as of Tuesday, including at least 181 children under the age of 10.
With both sides continuing military operations and no clear diplomatic off-ramp emerging, analysts warn the confrontation could intensify further in the coming weeks, increasing the risk of broader regional destabilization.
