Hamas misleads viewers with fake missile factory video
7:11 PM EDT, July 2, 2024
Hamas has released another propaganda video online showing an anti-tank missile production line. However, it was just a paint shop for Chinese Type 75 missiles. We present their features.
Hamas fighters are very active in posting videos online of attacks on Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) vehicles or soldiers. Most depict unsuccessful attacks (videos cut off right after impact, not showing the aftermath) on Merkava tanks or heavy Namer transporters. However, there are also videos showing Israeli soldiers being eliminated by Hamas snipers.
Additionally, Hamas has released several videos showing alleged production of Iranian large-caliber rifles or attempts to accuse IDF snipers of firing on a hospital. Now, another video from an ammunition factory has appeared online, where the only thing being done was painting Chinese Type 75 missiles.
Chinese Type 75 missiles: what they are and where they might come from
The missiles presented by Hamas are, as seen in the film fragment, Chinese Type 75 caliber 4.13 inches. They are used in Type 75 recoilless rifles introduced in the Chinese armed forces in the 1970s.
Interestingly, the Chinese design was a copy of the American M40 recoilless rifle, obtained by the Chinese through contacts in the Viet Cong, who acquired some of these rifles from the Americans. So here we have a design with a mass of about 440 pounds meant for mounting on light off-road vehicles.
The armor-penetrating capabilities are highly dependent on the ammunition used. For the American M344A1, it was over 15.75 inches with a 2.78-pound explosive charge. In the case of the Type 75 missile, weighing 17.54 pounds, according to the cat-uxo database, the explosive charge is exactly 2.78 pounds so that the penetration capabilities will be similar.
The question remains how Hamas fighters intend to use these missiles. Options could include fortified positions with recoilless rifles hidden in buildings or using them to produce charges attached with magnets to tanks. Hamas fighters have previously tried to sneak up on Israeli tanks using a network of tunnels to place such charges on them.
Most of these attempts failed, but successful actions have been taken, such as destroying a heavy Namer transporter. As for the origin of the Chinese missiles, their source is most likely Iran, which has been a client of China for decades in the context of weapons or parts necessary for their production.
