It's the first time Iran has launched a ballistic missile from a ship. The launch from the Shahid Mahdavi was, however, the first time Iran launched a ballistic missile from a ship. "The other benefit to Iran of this kind of weapon is it could attack Israel from axes that are less well-protected by Israeli missile defenses." AdvertisementDeploying SRBMs instead of cruise missiles on the Shahid Mahdavi and similar vessels could also have advantages. For one, the ballistic missiles Iran test-fired on Feb. 12 appear relatively small, around the same size as a cruise missile.

---

Persons: —, Fateh, Shahid Mahdavi, Bryan Clark, Hossein, Shahid, Ryan Bohl, RANE, Clark, Bohl Organizations: Service, Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, Hudson Institute, GCC, Gulf Cooperation, Iran, East Locations: Iran, Saudi Arabia, Israel, North Africa, Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, Tehran, Idlib, Russia