What Is the 'Ninja Missile' That Precisely Struck Al-Qaeda?

A photo circulated on social media in May 2019, claimed to be the vehicle in which Al-Qaeda's 'second-in-command' Abu al-Khayr al-Masri was riding at the time of his death. [Photo by Kyle Orton, researcher at the Henry Jackson Society, captured from social media]

[Asia Economy Military Specialist Yang Nak-gyu] Attention is focused on the Hellfire missile ‘AGM-114R9X (hereafter R9X)’ that killed Ayman al-Zawahiri (71), the leader of the terrorist organization al-Qaeda. The United States, having offered a $25 million bounty (approximately 32.6 billion KRW) and tracked him for 21 years, ultimately chose the R9X as a weapon capable of ending it all at once.

Al-Zawahiri, who led the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, was known as the ‘brain of al-Qaeda’ and served as the second-in-command. It is reported that he was staying in a house owned by a senior Taliban leader at the time of the airstrike.

This is not the first time the R9X has appeared publicly. It was also used last August when the United States deployed the attack drone ‘MQ-9 Reaper,’ known as the ‘assassin of the skies,’ to strike the Islamic militant group ‘Islamic State Khorasan’ (IS-K). The R9X is also called the ‘Ninja missile’ because it causes no civilian casualties.

The ‘R9X’ was developed during the Barack Obama administration. Instead of detonating explosives on impact, this missile deploys six blades just before collision to kill the target. The Obama administration developed this missile to reduce civilian casualties during counterterrorism airstrikes, as terrorist groups often used women and children as ‘human shields’ to prevent attacks.

The R9X was deployed during the operation to eliminate Osama bin Laden, and in February 2017, the CIA used it to kill al-Qaeda’s second-in-command Ahmad Hasan Abu al-Kar al-Masri.

Recently, the R9X has been mounted on the MQ-9 Reaper attack drone, making it more threatening. The MQ-9 Reaper can carry 14 AGM-114 Hellfire missiles or 4 Hellfire missiles along with 2 GBU-12 laser-guided bombs. Its top speed is 482 km/h, and its range reaches 5,926 km.

However, human rights organizations have raised concerns about the ease of ‘assassinations for national interest.’ Leta Taylor, Deputy Director of the international human rights organization Human Rights Watch (HRW), emphasized, "Weapons like the R9X may seem absolutely safe, but proper use requires supporting intelligence," adding, "Just because the U.S. wants to kill a specific person does not mean it is legal." There is a fundamental risk of human rights violations or breaches of international law in targeted strikes.