Iran used the Fattah 1 supersonic missile for the first time in an attack on Israel on October 1, Iran's semi-official Mehr News agency reported.
Fattah is considered the first hypersonic missile produced domestically by Iran.
Iran's military unveiled the weapon last year, saying it could travel at 15 times the speed of sound and was capable of "targeting missile defense systems".
However, weapons experts analyzing verified social media videos of the scene told CNN that variants of Iran's Shahab-3 ballistic missile series were used in the latest missile attack on Israel.
Trevor Ball, a former senior explosives technician for the US Army, told CNN that the debris was consistent with Shahab-3 variants such as the Emad or Ghadr, which are identifiable from images and videos of the attack.
In one video, debris from a booster rocket can be seen that clearly shows signs of an Emad rocket, according to Mr Ball. He added that other models such as the Kheibar Shekan may have also been used.
According to Patrick Senft, research coordinator at the Armament Research Service (ARES), the Shahab-3 is the basis for all of Iran's medium-range liquid-fueled ballistic missiles.
“It is most likely based on a North Korean missile, which itself may be based on a Soviet-designed Scud missile. The Shahab-3 is Iran’s first ballistic missile that can reach Israel,” Senft added.
According to Ball and Senft, fragments of an Iranian ballistic missile, including the guidance section and warhead, were seen in images and video obtained by CNN at the site of the missile attack at the Chabad Shalhavot School in Gedera. Ball said it was difficult to determine the exact model of the missile due to a lack of reference imagery.
Senft also added that “generally, such intermediate-range ballistic missiles do not leave much debris that can be analyzed if they function as intended.”
Regarding the claim that Iran used the Fattah 1 supersonic missile in the attack on Israel, weapons experts have expressed skepticism.
“This is one of their newest ballistic missiles and they have a lot to lose by using it,” Ball said. “Israel will learn what this missile is capable of when it is used. Iran gets free publicity and has no risk by saying it used a hypersonic missile against Israel.”
