Qassam rockets

Qassam
Eight Qassam launchers, seven equipped with operating systems and one armed and ready to launch, uncovered during an IDF operation in northern Gaza.
Service history
Used by	Palestinian militants
Wars	Gaza–Israel conflict
Production history
Designer	Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades
Designed	2001
Manufacturer	Palestinian militants
Produced	2001–current
Specifications
Weight	Qassam 1: 35 kg; Qassam 2: 40 kg; Qassam 3: 50 kg; Qassam 4: 40–50 kg
Length	Qassam 1: 180 cm; Qassam 2: 180 cm; Qassam 3: 220 cm; Qassam 4: 244 cm
Diameter	Qassam 1: 11.5 cm; Qassam 2: 11.5 cm; Qassam 3: 11.5 cm; Qassam 4: 11.5 cm
Warhead	Explosive material with metal bearings; standard explosive material
Warhead weight	Qassam 1: 5 kg; Qassam 2: 10 kg; Qassam 3: 20 kg; Qassam 4:~10 kg
Propellant	Solid fuel (sugar and potassium nitrate mix)
Operational range	Qassam 1: 5 km; Qassam 2: 12 km; Qassam 3: 16 km

The Qassam rocket (Arabic: صاروخ القسام‎‎ Ṣārūkh al-Qassām; also Kassam) is a simple, steel artillery rocket developed and deployed by the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, the military arm of Hamas. These rockets cannot be fired to target specific military objectives in or near civilian areas, and are "indiscriminate when used against targets in population centers."

Three models have been produced and used, with the first introduced in 2001. More generally, all types of Palestinian rockets fired into southern Israel, for example the Palestinian Islamic Jihad Al Quds rockets, are called Qassams by the Israeli media, and often by foreign media.

The international community considers indiscriminate attacks on civilians and civilian structures that do not discriminate between civilians and military targets as .

Qassam rockets are named after the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, the armed branch of Hamas, itself named for Izz ad-Din al-Qassam, a Syrian Muslim preacher whose death during a guerrilla raid against British Mandatory authorities in 1935 was one of the catalysts for the 1936–39 Arab revolt in Palestine.

The production of Qassams began in September 2001 following the outbreak of the Second Intifada. The first Qassam to be launched was the Qassam-1, fired on October 2001, with a maximum range of 3 kilometers (1.9 mi) to 4.5 kilometers (2.8 mi). February 10, 2002 was the first time Palestinians launched rockets into Israel, rather than at Israeli settlements in the Gaza Strip. One of the rockets landed in Kibbutz Saad. A Qassam first hit an Israeli city on March 5, 2002 when two rockets struck the southern city of Sderot. Some rockets have hit as far as the edge of Ashkelon. By the end of December 2008, a total of 15 people had been killed by Palestinian rockets since attacks began in 2001. Since 2000, Palestinian rockets, which include the Qassam, alongside others such as the Grad rocket, have been used to kill 22 Israeli citizens and one Thai national (as of January 9, 2009).