Iran's 'Gaza' drone goes mainstream at Qatar expo - report

Iran presented the latest model of the national defense industry’s new flagship product - 'Gaza' drone - at Qatar expo earlier in March. In Doha, "there was no doubt that Iran’s defense industry is going mainstream," said The Wall Street Journal (WSJ).

Said to be named in solidarity with the Gaza Strip in 2021 conflict, the unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) can carry as many as 13 bombs with a turboprop engine that can power it over 1,000 miles at 35,000 feet, according to the report.

As WSJ noted, since the expiration of United Nations (UN) restrictions on Iran’s missile and drone exports in October, "Tehran has increasingly sold its military wares on the international market, fueling concerns among the U.S. and its allies."

With a stated range of 1,243 miles, a 68-foot wingspan and a satellite link, the allegedly operational UAV could fly from Iran to Israel while loaded with 13 precision-guided bombs, said the report. By contrast, Shahed-129, a common Iranian drone, responsible for the rapid growth of Iran’s arms industry, carries four explosives.

Sudanese official Mohammed Fath Alrahman told WSJ: “The quality is medium but it’s half-price." A senior Qatar air force officer, quoted by the report, said he was "very impressed by their medium-range missile technologies."

Tehran has for years been supplying its free weapons to its allies across the Middle East. Iranian arms have been reportedly used in the October 7 Hamas attack and in the Yemen-based Houthis' hostilities in the Red Sea. As the report highlighted, Iran has made its role in asymmetrical warfare a selling point.