Sejil, or Sejjil, ( fa, سجیل, a
Quranic word meaning "baked clay", see
Surat al-Fil
Surat is a city in the western Indian state of Gujarat. The word Surat literally means ''face'' in Gujarati and Hindi. Located on the banks of the river Tapti near its confluence with the Arabian Sea, it used to be a large seaport. It is no ...
) is a family of
Iranian
solid-fueled medium range ballistic missiles. The Sejil are replacements for the
Shahab liquid-fueled ballistic missiles. According to US
Pentagon
In geometry, a pentagon (from the Greek πέντε ''pente'' meaning ''five'' and γωνία ''gonia'' meaning ''angle'') is any five-sided polygon or 5-gon. The sum of the internal angles in a simple pentagon is 540°.
A pentagon may be simpl ...
sources, the missile profile of the Sejil closely matches those of the
Ashura
Ashura (, , ) is a day of commemoration in Islam. It occurs annually on the 10th of Muharram, the first month of the Islamic calendar. Among Shia Muslims, Ashura is observed through large demonstrations of high-scale mourning as it marks the ...
,
Ghadr-110
The Ghadr-110 (Persian: قدر-110, meaning "intensity") is a medium-range ballistic missile designed and developed by Iran. The missile has a range of 1,800 km to 2,000 km.[Samen
Samen ( fa, سامن, also Romanized as Sāmen and Sāman) is a city in Hamadan Province, Iran and the capital of Samen District, in Malayer County. At the 2006 census, its population was 4,025, in 1,207 families.
The local language in Samen is ...]
.
The Sejil-2 was seen in the Great Prophet 15 war games conducted by Iran on the 15th of January, 2021.
Design
According to
Jane's Information Group, details of the design other than the number of stages and that it uses solid fuel have not been released. Uzi Rubin, former director of Israel's Ballistic Missile Defense Organization, indicated that, "Unlike other Iranian missiles, the Sajil bears no resemblance to any North Korean, Russian, Chinese or Pakistani (missile technology). It demonstrates a significant leap in Iran's missile capabilities." Rubin went on to state that the Sejil-1 " ... places Iran in the realm of multiple-stage missiles, which means that they are on the way to having intercontinental ballistic missile (
ICBM
An intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) is a ballistic missile with a range greater than , primarily designed for nuclear weapons delivery (delivering one or more thermonuclear warheads). Conventional, chemical, and biological weapons c ...
) capabilities ..."
The missile utilizes composite
solid fuel
Solid fuel refers to various forms of solid material that can be burnt to release energy, providing heat and light through the process of combustion. Solid fuels can be contrasted with liquid fuels and gaseous fuels. Common examples of solid fuels ...
and unlike the
Shahab-3 medium-range ballistic missile (MRBM), which is launched only vertically, the Sejil could be launched at a variable angle. As a weapon, Sejil presents much more challenge to Iran's potential enemies, as solid-fuel missiles can be launched with much less notice than liquid-fueled missiles, making them more difficult to strike prior to launch.
Political commentator Kiyan Nader Mokhtari elaborated more about the features of the new missile. "The engine and various fuels have been tested and the platform is now highly reliable. The latest tests to be carried out are mainly to do with the variety of warheads that it has to carry," he said.
"Some of the warheads obviously have been designed to be able to evade anti-ballistic missile defenses of the enemy in actual battle conditions," he added.
Iran claims that if launched from the city of
Natanz, it could reach
Tel Aviv in less than seven minutes.
Variants
* Sejil-1: The Sejil is a two-stage, solid-propellant,
surface-to-surface missile (SSM) produced by
Iran with a reported range. A successful test launch took place on 13 November 2008. Its range, if confirmed, would allow it to strike targets as far away as Israel and southeastern Europe, though Iran asserts that it is intended for purely defensive purposes.
* Sejil-2: Sejil-2 is an upgraded version of the Sejil.
The Sejil-2 two-stage solid-fuel missile has a 2,000 km range and was first test-fired on 20 May 2009. The Sejil-2 surface-to-surface
medium-range ballistic missile (MRBM) was first tested eight months prior to the actual test launch, which took place in the central Iranian
province of Semnan. Improvements include better navigation system, better targeting system, more payload, longer range, faster lift-off, longer storage time, quicker launch and lower detection possibility. On December 16, 2009,an upgraded version of Sejil-2 was test fired.
* Sejil-3: An unconfirmed report stated the a Sejil-3 may be in development. The Sejil-3 would reportedly have three stages, a maximum range of 4,000 km, and a launch weight of 38,000 kg.
The Sejil-3 is intended to be the first IRBM of the Sejil series.It is based on the design of the Sejil-2, but with an improved engine and guidance system and better survivability. The Sejil-3 is more maneuverable than its predecessor, making it harder for ABM systems to intercept. The final phase of testing is due to commence in early 2016, with entry into service by 2017.
File:Sejjil-2. two stage solid propellant ballistic missile.jpg, Artist's impression
File:Sejil 2 and qiam at tehran exhibition 2012.jpg, Sejil-2 (right) and Qiam (left) missile
See also
*
Military of Iran
*
Iranian military industry
*
List of military equipment manufactured in Iran
*
Iran's missile forces
*
Fateh-110
*
Equipment of the Iranian Army
*
Science and technology in Iran
External links
CSIS Missile Threat - Sejjil
References
{{Iran Military
Medium-range ballistic missiles of Iran
Intermediate-range ballistic missiles of Iran
Military equipment introduced in the 2010s