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First Post
08-05-2025
- Politics
- First Post
What are Harop drones that Pakistan claims India used in attacks near Karachi, Lahore?
India's alleged use of Israeli-made Harop drones in Pakistan has put a spotlight on this loitering munition's deadly precision and long endurance. From past use in Azerbaijan to current claims in Operation Sindoor, the Harop's role is reshaping drone warfare read more A Boeing C-17 Globemaster III military transport aircraft of the United States Air Force (USAF) flies past a Harop unmanned combat air vehicle (UCAV) during an aerial display at the Singapore Airshow in Singapore, February 17, 2012. File Image/Reuters Tensions between India and Pakistan are heating up as India, in response to Pakistan's bid to 'engage a number of military targets in Northern and Western India,' reportedly used drones to strike targets in urban town in Pakistan. Pakistan has claimed that India employed Israeli-made Harop drones — also known as loitering munitions or suicide drones. These claims have directed attention to the Harop drone, its operational history, and its battlefield capabilities. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD In the early hours of May 7, 2025, India launched coordinated air strikes targeting nine terror-related locations across Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK), under the codename Operation Sindoor. The Pakistani military claimed that there were Harop drones, shot down in multiple areas on Thursday, including within the limits of Lahore and Karachi. 'Debris is being collected from all impact sites, including within Karachi and Lahore city limits,' a spokesperson for the Pakistan military said. 'We are neutralising them one by one,' the spokesperson claimed. All we know about the Harop The Harop drone, developed by the MBT Missiles Division of Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI), belongs to a class of weapons known as loitering munitions. These drones are designed to hover in a designated area for extended periods, identify hostile targets, and destroy them by crashing into them with a built-in explosive payload. Unlike conventional UAVs, which return after surveillance missions, loitering munitions serve a dual purpose: reconnaissance and attack. HAROP has a 9-hour endurance to seek targets in a designated area. Image/IAI The Harop is equipped with an electro-optical (EO) or infrared (IR) seeker to detect, track, and engage static or mobile threats, including radar systems, missile launchers, and command posts. Capable of autonomous operation with human oversight, the Harop offers a man-in-the-loop control mode, allowing the operator to make final decisions before impact. It is also equipped with abort capability, allowing for mission cancellation mid-flight to avoid collateral damage. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Some of the drone's notable features include: A wingspan of 3 meters and a length of 2.5 meters. Maximum speed of 417 km/h. Operational range of 200 km. Flight endurance exceeding six hours. Service ceiling of approximately 15,000 feet. A 16 kg high-explosive warhead. Circular Error Probable (CEP) of under one meter, making it highly accurate. This combination of attributes allows the Harop to loiter over hostile areas, strike from any angle—including shallow or steep dives — and perform in GPS-denied environments due to its resistance to GNSS jamming. Harop is combat-proven The Harop has demonstrated its combat effectiveness in multiple conflict zones. It first gained major attention during the 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, where Azerbaijan employed the drone to great effect against Armenian forces. The Harop proved especially effective in targeting enemy air defences and armored units, often in challenging conditions such as freezing weather and heavy electronic warfare interference. An advisor to Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, Hikmet Hajiyev, publicly praised the Harop's effectiveness during that conflict. Also Watch: The drone has also been credited with destroying a Syrian Air Defence SA-22 Greyhound system on May 10, 2018. More recently, on December 9, 2024, the Harop was reportedly used in an attack on Syrian Armed Forces. This battlefield history underlines the Harop's role as a critical tool for neutralising high-value, time-sensitive targets without requiring prior ground intelligence. Its autonomous capabilities and ISR (Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance) functions allow for real-time adjustments and precision strikes. India's use of Harop India has been a known operator of the Harop drone for over a decade. The Indian Air Force first showed interest in the platform in the mid-2000s and began formal procurement in 2009. That year, it announced the purchase of Harop systems worth around $100 million. The drones were first publicly unveiled ahead of the Aero India 2009 air show. By 2019, India had significantly expanded its inventory of these drones. The Indian Air Force decided to add 54 more Harops to its existing fleet of over 100, re-designating them as P-4. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD HAROP is supervised by remote human-in-the-loop mission control and may be aborted if required. Image/IAI In 2021, India acquired additional Harop systems, specifically to strengthen surveillance and offensive capabilities along the borders with Pakistan and China. The Indian military is believed to operate the Harop from both ground-based and naval canister-launch platforms, enabling flexibility in deployment across diverse terrains. Although India has not officially confirmed the use of Harop drones in the current operation, the country's long-standing procurement and operational integration of the system suggest it forms a core part of its offensive drone arsenal. Other variants Apart from India and Israel, several countries have incorporated the Harop into their defence strategies. Azerbaijan is one of the most visible users of the drone, credited with extensive operational success. The Netherlands recently announced acquisition plans for its Navy, specifically for amphibious and multi-support ships operated by the Koninklijke Marine. Morocco is also reported to be among the drone's international customers. IAI has also developed a more compact version of the drone, known as the Mini Harop. Designed for tactical operations, it offers a shorter endurance of around one hour and is typically launched from light tactical vehicles. The Mini Harop is particularly effective against fast-moving, fleeting targets in battlefield scenarios where rapid deployment and high accuracy are essential. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Also Watch: These drones offer a low-risk, high-impact alternative to manned aerial missions, especially in scenarios requiring stealth, endurance and pinpoint accuracy. With inputs from agencies
Daily Mirror
30-04-2025
- General
- Daily Mirror
Raging fire blankets RAF airbase in thick smoke as locals warned to 'keep windows closed'
Crews from four fire stations rushed to the RAF Brize Norton area to fight a huge fire that is billowing out 'toxic products' into evening skies over Oxfordshire A massive fire has broken out near to the UK's largest RAF airbase, which employs around 5800 military personnel, with an urgent warning to the public over "toxic products" that are billowing out into the night sky over the base. Members of the public have been warned to avoid the area due to the toxic chemicals emitted by the smoke plume. Local residents in the villages surrounding RAF Brize Norton have been urged to keep their windows and doors closed for their own safety. This key RAF base sits along the Oxfordshire and Gloucestershire border and is home to some of the air service's largest planes like the Airbus A400M and Boeing C-17 Globemaster III. RAF personnel at the base work to keep Britain and its allies' aircraft in the skies, as the main operating base for air-to-air refuelling. The huge fire is believed to have been caused by a massive pile of burning tyres, which are responsible for the toxic fumes. Crews from nearby fire stations rushed to the scene of the blaze on Wednesday evening (April 30), which took hold near the village of Bradwell. There are four teams of firefighters working into the night in an attempt to quell the blaze and douse its toxic plume. However, Oxfordshire Fire and Rescue Service has cautioned that the incident will likely continue into the dark hours of Thursday morning. Oxfordshire Fire and Rescue Service said in a statement: "Ongoing incident. Crews from Burford Fire Station, Carterton Fire Station, Bampton Fire Station and Faringdon Fire Station are dealing with a large tyre stack fire near the village of Bradwell. "Residents South and Southwest of this including into Gloucestershire Fire and Rescue Service's area of Lechlade are advised to keep windows and doors closed due to the toxic products within the fire plume. "This incident is likely to protract through the night so please bear with us at the time."
