Iraq test-fires indigenous short-range Yaqeen-1 rocket

This photo shows the successful test-firing of Iraq’s locally designed and manufactured al-Yaqeen-1 rocket on July 17, 2017.

Iraq has successfully test-fired a locally designed and manufactured rocket as part of efforts to revive its defense industries and use indigenous military hardware in the fight against Daesh Takfiri terrorist group and potential foreign threats.

Director of the General Military Industries Sadiq al-Tamimi said in a statement on Monday that al-Yaqeen-1 (Certainty-1) missile was successfully fired at its designated target on Monday.

Tamimi stressed that the short-range rocket, which has a range of 15 kilometers and is capable of carrying 350 kilograms of warheads, has been fully designed and manufactured at home by Iraqi experts.

The Iraqi Defense Ministry later released footage showing al-Yaqeen-1 blasting off from a launcher deployed in an unknown location.

The military achievement came exactly a week after Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi formally declared victory over Daesh extremists in Mosul, which served as the extremists’ main urban stronghold in the conflict-ridden Arab country.

In the run-up to Mosul's liberation, Iraqi army soldiers and volunteer fighters from the Popular Mobilization Units, commonly known by the Arabic name Hashd al-Sha’abi, had made sweeping gains against Daesh since launching the operation on October 17, 2016.

The Iraqi forces took control of eastern Mosul in January after 100 days of fighting, and launched the battle in the west on February 19.

An estimated 862,000 people have been displaced from Mosul ever since the battle to retake the city began eight months ago. A total of 195,000 civilians have also returned, mainly to the liberated areas of eastern Mosul.