Munitions

LAR-160

Also known as
  • IMI LAR-160
  • LAR 160
  • LAR
  • Light Artillery Rocket System

The LAR-160 is an Israeli 160 mm free-flight artillery rocket family built for sealed launch-pod systems and exported widely. Human Rights Watch documented Azerbaijani use of the cluster variant in Nagorno-Karabakh, where each rocket carried 104 M095 submunitions and had a 12 to 45 km range.

LAR-160, 160 mm artillery rocket / cluster-munition rocket, Munitions
Image source: Azeri LAR-160, parade in Baku, 2013

Role in Conflicts

2020 Nagorno-Karabakh Conflict
Role in conflict
Cluster-rocket artillery fire

HRW documented Azerbaijani LAR-160 cluster-rocket strikes on Stepanakert and Hadrut in 2020, including rockets that dispersed M095 submunitions.

Profile / Specs

Profile

Origin
Israel
Type
160 mm artillery rocket / cluster-munition rocket
Service note
Late Cold War design; documented in Azerbaijani service during the 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh war
Designer
Israel Military Industries
Designed
Late 1970s
Unit cost
Not publicly documented
Produced
1980s onward
Number built
Not publicly documented

Specifications

Caliber
160 mm
Range
12-45 km
Launch pod containers
Standard launchers carry two sealed 13-rocket LPCs
Cluster payload
104 M095 dual-purpose submunitions per rocket
Propulsion
Free-flight, fin-stabilized, solid-propellant rocket
Variants
  • Mk I high-explosive rocket
  • Mk II cluster-munition rocket
  • Mk IV extended-range rocket
  • ACCULAR 160 guided derivative
Carried Submunitions

The cluster version of the LAR-160 carries M095 submunitions.

Carried itemItem typeCarriage evidence
M095 DPICM cluster submunition, Dual-purpose improved conventional munition submunition, MunitionsM095 DPICM cluster submunitionDPICM submunition

HRW identified LAR-160 rockets containing M095 submunitions in Azerbaijani attacks on Stepanakert and Hadrut, and said each rocket delivers 104 submunitions.

Sources: Technical Briefing Note: Cluster Munition Use in the Karabakh Conflict, Azerbaijan: Cluster Munitions Used in Nagorno-Karabakh

Why the payload matters

The cluster-rocket variant is the configuration directly documented in Nagorno-Karabakh reporting.

Sources: Technical Briefing Note: Cluster Munition Use in the Karabakh Conflict, Azerbaijan: Cluster Munitions Used in Nagorno-Karabakh

Documented Configuration

Human Rights Watch's technical briefing and GlobalSecurity's system profile give the clearest open-source snapshot of the LAR-160 family.

FactWhat the sources saySource
Launch pod loadStandard launchers carry two sealed 13-rocket LPCs.LAR - Light Artillery Rocket System
Range envelopeThe rocket has a 12 km minimum range and a 45 km maximum range.Technical Briefing Note: Cluster Munition Use in the Karabakh Conflict
Cluster loadEach rocket carries 104 M095 dual-purpose submunitions with a self-destruct mechanism.Technical Briefing Note: Cluster Munition Use in the Karabakh Conflict

HRW also tied Azerbaijan's use of the rockets to the 2008-2009 transfer from Israel and to the 2020 attacks on Stepanakert and Hadrut.

Timeline

LAR-160 Key Events

  1. Azerbaijan receives LAR-160 rockets

    Human Rights Watch cited SIPRI reporting that Azerbaijan received LAR-160 cluster rockets from Israel in 2008-2009, and said the Azerbaijani launcher designations were Dolu-1, Leysan, and Shimsek.

    Sources: Technical Briefing Note: Cluster Munition Use in the Karabakh Conflict

  2. Cluster-rocket use begins in Nagorno-Karabakh

    Human Rights Watch documented Azerbaijani cluster-munition attacks in Stepanakert beginning on September 27, 2020, with later strikes in Hadrut.

    Sources: Azerbaijan: Cluster Munitions Used in Nagorno-Karabakh

  3. HRW publishes the technical briefing

    Human Rights Watch's technical briefing identified LAR-160 rockets containing M095 submunitions, gave a 12-to-45 km range, and said each rocket carries 104 submunitions.

    Sources: Technical Briefing Note: Cluster Munition Use in the Karabakh Conflict

Media

LAR-160 Images

LAR-160, 160 mm artillery rocket / cluster-munition rocket, Munitions - view 1
Source: Azeri LAR-160, parade in Baku, 2013
LAR-160, 160 mm artillery rocket / cluster-munition rocket, Munitions - view 2
Source: Lynx LAR-160
LAR-160, 160 mm artillery rocket / cluster-munition rocket, Munitions - view 3
Source: Detached LAR-160 Launcher
Related Weapon Systems
M095 DPICM cluster submunition, Dual-purpose improved conventional munition submunition, MunitionsMunitionsM095 DPICM cluster submunitionDual-purpose improved conventional munition submunitionThe M095 is an Israeli-made dual-purpose improved conventional munition submunition carried inside LAR-160 cluster rockets. Cluster Munition Monitor reporting ties M095 DPICM remnants to the April 2016 Nagorno-Karabakh clashes, and Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International documented M095 remnants, impact patterns, pink stabilization ribbons, and unexploded submunitions after Azerbaijani rocket attacks on Stepanakert and Hadrut in 2020.
BM-30 Smerch, 300 mm heavy multiple launch rocket system, ArtilleryArtilleryBM-30 Smerch300 mm heavy multiple launch rocket systemThe BM-30 Smerch, also designated 9K58, is a Soviet-designed heavy multiple launch rocket system built around 300 mm rockets and a 12-tube launcher on an 8x8 wheeled chassis. Its ammunition family includes high-explosive, cargo, mine-laying, sensor-fuzed, and thermobaric rounds, making Smerch a deep-fire artillery system rather than a front-line direct-fire weapon. In Ukraine, Syria, and Nagorno-Karabakh, documented Smerch-family remnants and firing reports tie the launcher to long-range area fires, including cluster-munition attacks.

Sources

Technical Briefing Note: Cluster Munition Use in the Karabakh ConflictPublisher: Human Rights Watch | Note: Supports 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh Conflict direct use: HRW documented Azerbaijani use, cited the 2008-2009 transfer from Israel, and gave the 12 km to 45 km range and 104 M095 submunition payload. | Accessed: 2026-06-20Azerbaijan: Cluster Munitions Used in Nagorno-KarabakhPublisher: Human Rights Watch | Note: Supports 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh Conflict direct use: HRW documented Azerbaijani LAR-160 cluster-rocket attacks on Stepanakert and Hadrut during the 2020 fighting. | Accessed: 2026-06-20LAR - Light Artillery Rocket SystemPublisher: GlobalSecurity.org | Note: Supports general LAR-160 background, IMI manufacturer attribution, 13-rocket sealed pod configuration, 160 mm caliber, and 45 km range specifications. | Accessed: 2026-06-20PULS Multiple Rocket LauncherPublisher: Elbit Systems | Note: Supports current Elbit rocket-launcher family context and the 160 mm Accular rocket derivative in modern modular launchers. | Accessed: 2026-06-20Azeri LAR-160, parade in Baku, 2013Publisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Supports image provenance for an Azerbaijani LAR-160 launcher photograph released under CC0. | Accessed: 2026-06-20LAR-160 on Lynx VehiclePublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Supports image provenance for a LAR-160 launcher photograph licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 or GFDL. | Accessed: 2026-06-20Lynx LAR-160Publisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Supports image provenance for a Lynx vehicle with LAR-160 launcher, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 or GFDL. | Accessed: 2026-06-20Detached LAR-160 LauncherPublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Supports image provenance for a detached LAR-160 launcher photograph licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0. | Accessed: 2026-06-20