Analysis of Ballistic Missiles Launched by Iran in 2024

The brutal Hamas attacks targeting mostly Israeli civilians on October 7, 2023, sent the already volatile Middle East spiraling out of control and turned what has historically been a localized conflict between Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) and militant factions based in the Gaza Strip into a broader regional conflict between Israel and its western allies, and Iranian proxy groups operating in multiple countries, most notably Hezbollah in Lebanon, the Houthis in Yemen, and Iranian-backed proxy groups in Iraq. Hoping to send a message to Tehran, and perhaps even significantly blunt Iran’s continued support for various militant groups fighting against the IDF, Israel carried out a high-profile and deeply controversial airstrike on Iran’s embassy compound in Damascus, Syria, destroying a consulate annex building and killing Quds Force Brigadier General Mohammad Reza Zahedi, along with multiple high ranking members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and a few civilians, totaling 16 dead all together.