Hezbollah announced in recent weeks that it is using a new weapon against Israel: the Burkan rocket. During the current fighting in the north, the terrorist organization confirmed several times that it launched the rocket into Israel. The last time was Monday, when the organization claimed to have fired two Burka" rockets at the Biranit military post.
Read more:
In his speech on November 11, Hezbollah Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah said that the terrorist organization "started using the Burkan missile." According to him, the use indicates an increase in the range of Hezbollah's missiles."
The Burkan is actually a heavy and short-range rocket, which can carry a heavy warhead and cause significant damage. According to the Lebanese newspaper An-Nahar, the rocket's warhead weighs 100 kg, and is capable of causing destruction with a diameter of 150 meters. According to Hezbollah's Al-Manar network, the Burkan's warhead can be loaded with explosives of various weights, ranging from 60 to 500 kg.
An-Nahar pointed out that the rocket is manufactured by Hezbollah, which used it in the past in Syria as well. It is launched from small trucks, or from ground bases. According to An-Nahar, reports from 2016 indicate that Hezbollah possessed hundreds of Burkan rockets, with the price of each rocket being between $300 and $400.
The rocket is usually fired at a relatively short range, usually up to 10 km. It should be noted that in many cases the rockets undergo improvements by the terrorist organizations, and sometimes the rockets receive a significant upgrade in capabilities.
A Lebanese source said Tuesday that, as Nasrallah promised in his last speech, Hezbollah introduced Burkan rockets and UAVs into combat in the north – apparently to show that the terrorist organization is "serious" and has additional means. It is not yet clear whether the introduction of the Burkan and UAVs will bring about a significant change in the fighting between Israel and Hezbollah.
Last week, the newspaper Al-Sharq al-Awast published an interview with an expert named Hisham Jaber, head of the Middle East Center for Development, who claimed that Hezbollah's power is 10 times greater than Hamas' power - both in terms of military power and missiles, and in terms of the number of fighters. According to reports, the Palestinians also have rocket models similar to the Burkan.