Iran has unveiled the MIAAD 120mm laser-guided mortar at the Partner 2025 defense expo, highlighting a step change in its indigenous precision-strike capabilities. Engineered by the Iranian Ministry of Defence, the round blends the familiar form of a conventional mortar munition with an internal semi-active laser seeker that guides it to illuminated targets. The announcement signals Tehran’s push to field lower-cost precision weapons usable in rugged or contested environments.
A key advantage of MIAAD is its compatibility with standard smoothbore 120mm mortars, meaning units can employ the round without specialized launchers, altered firing procedures, or extra fire-control hardware. That ease of integration lets existing mortar teams retain the same loading and firing drills while gaining precision effects—an important force-multiplying step for irregular or proxy forces that rely on simple logistics.
Operationally, the MIAAD is reported to engage targets at roughly 4.5–8 kilometers using a top-attack profile. The 31 kg round carries a 10.7 kg high-explosive fragmentation warhead (4.1 kg of explosive fill) and is claimed to achieve a hit probability near 0.7 under typical battlefield conditions. Its lethality is sufficient to threaten light armored vehicles, fortified positions, and concentrated personnel.
Tactically, the munition can be fired in coordinated salvos from dispersed mortar teams onto a single laser-designated aimpoint or used in rapid, simultaneous engagements of nearby targets without mutual interference. Analysts say the combination of low cost, backwards compatibility, and semiactive guidance makes MIAAD particularly useful for asymmetric operations and complicates counterproliferation and force-protection planning across the region.
