Ayman al-Zawahiri's death: What is the Hellfire R9X missile that the Americans purportedly used? (2024)

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Washington is reported to have used a 'ninja bomb' equipped with six blades that deploy before impact to shred its target without any blast effect.

BySandra Favier

Published on August 3, 2022, at 4:08 am (Paris), updated on August 3, 2022, at 5:55 pm

Time to 2 min.

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Ayman al-Zawahiri's death: What is the Hellfire R9X missile that the Americans purportedly used? (1)

After President Joe Biden's August 1 announcement of the death of Al-Qaeda's number one operative, Ayman al-Zawahiri, information about the weapon used remains unclear.

Mr. Biden referred to a drone strike in his short speech from the White House. An American official told the press on condition of anonymity that the drone had dropped two Hellfire missiles and that no American military presence on the ground had been necessary. Kabul, for its part, initially denied a drone strike, referring to a "rocket" that had hit "an empty house," before acknowledging on Tuesday morning that an "air attack" had been carried out by "American drones."

There were no traces of an explosion on the targeted building or collateral victims, although the family of the Al-Qaeda leader was present in the house. All these clues point to the use of a secret missile, which is believed to have been involved in other targeted assassinations of extremist leaders, but whose use the Pentagon has never confirmed.

Read more Subscribers only Biden tries to erase Afghanistan failure with death of al-Zawahiri

What are the clues after the American strike?

Ayman Al-Zawahiri was killed on July 31 when two missiles hit a house in Kabul. The three-story home is located in Sherpur, an affluent area of the Afghan capital, where several villas are occupied by senior Taliban officials and commanders.

The Al-Qaeda leader had been spotted "multiple times and for long periods of time on the balcony where he was finally hit" by the strike, the US official added. There were no signs of an explosion in the building and no one else was injured in the operation, US officials said.

Family members were present in the house but "were deliberately not targeted and were not injured," he added. Photos show windows on one floor blown out, but the rest of the building, including windows on other floors, is still intact.

Read the obituary Ayman al-Zawahiri, the Egyptian doctor who dedicated his life to jihad

What is a Hellfire R9X missile?

US officials did mention the use of "Hellfire missiles" and these – the Hellfire AGM-114 specifically – are known for their powerful explosions and, often, the collateral damage they cause. The clues left after the American strike on Ayman Al-Zawahiri's house accordingly suggest, as American former investigative journalist Jay Hancock pointed out in a tweet, that the CIA used another type of missile developed from the AGM-114 – the Hellfire R9X.

The R9X, also known as the "ninja bomb," was developed under the Obama administration and is said to lack an explosive charge. Equipped with six blades that deploy before impact, it shreds its target without any blast effect.

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The use of the R9X has never been officially acknowledged by the Pentagon or CIA, the two US entities responsible for targeted assassinations of extremist leaders. This mysterious weapon was named the "Flying Ginsu" after a famous 1980s television commercial for Ginsu brand kitchen knives, which could cut cleanly through aluminum cans and still remain perfectly sharp.

Precedents, but no confirmation

The existence of such a missile was first mentioned in March 2017, when senior Al-Qaeda leader Abu Kheir Al-Masri was killed by a drone strike while traveling in a car in Syria. The photos showed a large hole through the roof of the car. The interior of the vehicle and its occupants had been shredded, but the front and back of the car appeared completely intact.

In the American press, a 2019 Wall Street Journal (WSJ) investigation confirmed its use by the Americans after the death that year of Jamal Al-Badaoui, considered the deputy to the mastermind of the October 2000 suicide attack on the US destroyer USS Cole in the port of Aden.

US officials had described the missile to the newspaper as "an anvil that falls from the sky at full speed." According to the WSJ, the Hellfire R9X has been used repeatedly in various attacks in Libya, Syria, Iraq, Yemen and Somalia.

Sandra Favier

Translation of an original article published in French on lemonde.fr; the publisher may only be liable for the French version.

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Ayman al-Zawahiri's death: What is the Hellfire R9X missile that the Americans purportedly used? (2024)

FAQs

Ayman al-Zawahiri's death: What is the Hellfire R9X missile that the Americans purportedly used? ›

Ayman al-Zawahiri's death: What is the Hellfire R9X missile that the Americans purportedly used? Washington is reported to have used a 'ninja bomb' equipped with six blades that deploy before impact to shred its target without any blast effect. Time to 2 min.

What is the R9X variant of the AGM 114 Hellfire missile? ›

Its lethality is due to 100 lb (45 kg) of dense material with six blades flying at high speed, to crush and cut the targeted person — the R9X has also been referred to as the 'Ninja Missile' and 'Flying Ginsu'. It is intended to reduce collateral damage when targeting specific people.

What is the US drone blade weapon? ›

The weapon, formally known as the R9X, is an inert Hellfire missile designed by the Pentagon and the CIA to kill terrorist leaders.

How accurate is the r9x? ›

The R9X tore a hole in the roof of the car and shattered the windscreen, but the rest of the vehicle was left intact. Experts have since suggested the R9X is so precise it could kill the driver of a car and spare the passenger.

Can a Hellfire missile destroy a tank? ›

The Hellfire missile is capable of defeating any known tank in the world today. It can be guided to the target either from inside the aircraft or by lasers outside the aircraft.

How powerful are Hellfire missiles? ›

Each missile is a miniature aircraft, complete with its own guidance computer, steering control and propulsion system. The payload is a high-explosive, copper-lined-charge warhead powerful enough to burn through the heaviest tank armor in existence.

What is the blast radius of a Hellfire missile? ›

Chamayou reports that the Hellfire missile has a 'kill radius' of 50 feet (15 metres) and a 'wounding radius' of 65 feet (20 metres); the GBU-12 Paveway II has a 'casualty radius' of between 200 and 300 feet (within which 50 per cent of people will be killed).

How fast do Hellfire missiles travel? ›

It has a maximum speed of Mach 1.3 or about 1,600 kph. It takes a Hellfire missile about 30 seconds to reach a target at maximum range.

What weapon killed Al-Zawahiri? ›

Take the weapon reportedly used to kill al-Zawahiri: the Hellfire R9X “Ninja” missile.

What is the Hellfire r9x used for? ›

Also called the "ninja bomb," the missile has become the US weapon of choice for killing leaders of extremist groups while avoiding civilian casualties. The missile is fired from a Predator drone.

How long does it take for a Hellfire missile motor to burn? ›

Hellfire missiles ignite and burn for approximately 3 seconds before the motor burns out and the missile turns into a glide bomb. After 3 seconds no smoke trail is visible.

What is the purpose of the Hellfire missile? ›

HELLFIRE is an air-to-ground missile system designed to defeat tanks and other individual targets while minimizing the exposure of the launch vehicle to enemy fire. HELLFIRE uses laser guidance and is designed to accept other guidance packages.

What missile doesn't explode? ›

​ According to an analysis by “The War Zone,” the R9X doesn't explode and wields six long blades “that are stowed inside and then deploy through the skin of the missile seconds before impact to ensure that it shreds anything in its tracks,” flying directly into designated targets.

What is the Pentagon six bladed Ginsu weapon? ›

Synopsis. The Pentagon recently used a modified Hellfire missile, known as "the flying Ginsu," to target a Kataib Hezbollah member in Baghdad. This missile, with six blades, aims to reduce collateral damage in precision strikes.

What is the difference between the Hellfire and Griffin missile? ›

The missile is smaller than the Hellfire typically used by armed UAVs, which reduces the potential for collateral damage. The Griffin missile and launch assembly is also lighter than the Hellfire, allowing more to be mounted on the Predator. Three Griffins can be carried in place of one Hellfire.

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