On March 17, 2026, Hezbollah published a video in which what appears to be the “Paveh” cruise missile is seen inside a truck or trailer with a civilian white exterior (see the lower center image in the visual). In the video, black hydraulic arms are visible for opening it, and the launch rail itself can be seen (see the images on the right in the visual). According to Hezbollah, they launched the missile toward the Palmachim base, located south of Tel Aviv. On the same day (March 17), an image was also published showing the alleged tail remnants of a “Paveh” missile that supposedly fell in the area of Lake Qaraoun in Lebanon (the southern part of the Beqaa region). This is not the first public evidence of Hezbollah possessing the Iranian cruise missile from the Soumar family. In documentation released by Hezbollah on November 23, 2024, a cruise missile from this family was seen. These missiles were developed by Iran based on Soviet Kh-55 missiles purchased from Ukraine in the early 2000s. Over the years, Iran has presented several models from this family, such as Paveh (Pahave), Abu Mahdi, Quds (used by the Houthis), and others. These missiles have ranges of 700–2,000 km and are considered accurate. The Western designation for the “Paveh” is “351”.Hezbollah’s cruise missile array is part of the organization’s advanced conventional strategic weapons systems. The cruise missiles were transferred to Hezbollah from Iran via the Iranian weapons corridor, which operated until the fall of the Assad regime in December 2024. Most of them were transported in trucks through the land routes of the corridor: Iran – Iraq – Syria – Lebanon. A prominent documented case is the container truck carrying Iranian cruise missiles that was traveling in a large convoy of trucks from the Al-Qaim border crossing (Iraq) toward the Albu Kamal border crossing (Syria) and was attacked by Israel in November 2022 (see the lower left image in the visual).On September 14, 2019, the Iranians launched at least 7 Paveh-type cruise missiles in an attack against the main oil facilities of Aramco in Saudi Arabia (Abqaiq and Khurais).On April 13, 2024, the Iranians launched about 30 missiles of this type toward Israel as part of the missile attack carried out by Iran, but all were intercepted during flight. In January 2024, a cruise missile of this type was documented in use by Shiite militias in Iraq (see the upper center image in the visual).On March 14, the IDF spokesperson stated that Hezbollah had begun concealing missiles and rockets in civilian trucks, which it transports through Lebanon’s coastal areas, and that this is intended, among other things, for launches against ships at sea and targets deep at sea. The IDF spokesperson warned that any truck traveling near the coast is in danger due to Hezbollah’s use of trucks in that area. On March 17, an airstrike was carried out against a truck compound on “Airport Road” in western Beirut (according to some reports, the compound is called “Shqra”). According to the videos after the strike, at least one truck was hit.
