The Fajr-5 artillery rocket played a key role in the 2012 Operation Pillar of Defense, demonstrating a new capability by Palestinian militants to strike Israeli cities as far away as Tel Aviv and Jerusalem. Iran produces the rocket, and although the manufacture of some components and final assembly may take place in Gaza workshops, Palestinian militants still depend heavily on Iran for critical components. The Fajr-5 is actually a rather crude device, originally designed as an area weapon rather than a precision weapon, and while it acts as a psychological threat to Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, it is not accurate enough to target specific marks.
During the current showdown in Gaza, which Israel Defense Forces labeled Operation Protective Edge, Hamas has launched at least 14 of these rockets into Tel Aviv, Dimona and Jerusalem and continues to do so more frequently than it did during the 2012 crisis. Hamas also launched a Syrian Khaibar rocket that fell just short of Haifa on July 8, showing that the Fajr-5 is no longer the farthest-reaching rocket in the Palestinian arsenal. Still, the Fajr-5 is slightly more accurate than the Syrian Khaibar and is likely available to Hamas in greater numbers.
