2014 Yemen Civil War: fired by Houthi-aligned forces against Saudi targets including Abha International Airport in June and August 2019 and the Shuqayq desalination plant, making Quds-1 part of the Houthi long-range strike campaign against coalition infrastructure.
Role detailsMunitions
Quds-1 land-attack cruise missile
Also known as
- Quds 1
- Quds-1
- Qods-1
- Jerusalem 1
- 351 land-attack cruise missile
- 351 LACM
- Project 351
The Quds-1 is a Houthi land-attack cruise missile publicly displayed in Yemen in July 2019 and identified by U.S. sources as the 351 land-attack cruise missile. Open-source and UN-linked analysis describes a compact, ground-launched cruise missile powered by a TJ100-type turbojet and tied to Iranian design and supply networks despite Houthi claims of indigenous development. In the 2014 Yemen Civil War, Houthi-aligned forces used the Quds-1 for long-range strikes against Saudi airport, desalination, and oil-infrastructure targets.
Role in Conflicts
Profile / Specs
Profile
- Origin
- Yemen / Iran
- Type
- Land-attack cruise missile
- Service note
- First publicly displayed in 2019
- Produced
- 2019-present
Specifications
- Length
- About 5.3 m
- Diameter
- About 35 cm
- Range
- About 700-800 km
- Speed
- Reported maximum about 735 km/h
- Propulsion
- TJ100-type small turbojet
- Launch mode
- Ground-launched with solid booster and turbojet cruise propulsion
- U.S. designation
- 351 land-attack cruise missile
Identification And Lineage
The Quds-1 is best understood as a compact ground-launched cruise missile in the Iranian-linked Quds/Project 351 line rather than a simple rebadged Soumar. The public record combines Houthi display footage, wreckage analysis, UN reporting, and maritime interdiction evidence.
| Evidence point | What it supports | Catalog handling |
|---|---|---|
| Quds-1 versus Soumar | Arms Control Wonk and Covert Shores identify a smaller-diameter missile with fixed wings, a different booster, and a TJ100-type engine rather than a direct full-size Soumar copy. | The summary describes Iranian lineage and design influence without treating Soumar as the same weapon. |
| 351 designation | CSIS and CENTCOM material connect the U.S. 351 label to Quds land-attack cruise-missile components and display evidence. | The 351 aliases improve catalog search while keeping the public name as Quds-1. |
| Quds family growth | IISS, Iran Watch, and existing catalog records identify later Quds land-attack and anti-ship variants including Quds-2, Quds-3, Quds-Z-0, and Sayyad. | Variant rows link public same-family records where they already exist and leave unlinked rows where the catalog has no separate public page. |
Sources: Meet the Quds 1; A trace of the Quds in Tehran?; Covert Shores Iranian cruise missiles; The Missile War in Yemen; CENTCOM 2020 dhow interdiction slides; Iran Solidifies Missile Support to the Houthis; Houthi anti-ship missile systems: getting better all the time.
Variants
Public sources treat Quds-1 as the first fielded member of a wider Quds/Project 351 land-attack cruise-missile line, with later Houthi displays and analyses separating longer-range land-attack variants from anti-ship derivatives.
| Variant | Configuration | Designation notes |
|---|---|---|
| Quds-2 | Longer-range land-attack successor | IISS and TWZ identify the November 2020 Jeddah Aramco strike as involving a Quds missile variant described by the Houthis as Quds-2, indicating a follow-on member of the same line with greater reach than Quds-1. Sources: Cruise Missiles in the Middle East, Yemen's Houthi Rebels Say They Struck Saudi Oil Facility With New Type Of Cruise Missile |
| Quds-3 | Later land-attack member | Iran Watch reported that Quds-3 appeared in a 2022 Houthi parade and looked identical to earlier Quds-1 and Quds-2 variants that had already been used against Saudi civilian targets. |
 | EO/IR anti-ship derivative | IISS describes Quds-Z-0 as an anti-ship cruise missile in the Paveh/Quds family, differentiated from Sayyad by its electro-optical or infrared seeker. Sources: Houthi anti-ship missile systems: getting better all the time |
| Radar-homing anti-ship derivative | IISS treats Sayyad as a related Paveh/Quds-based anti-ship cruise missile, with a radar seeker distinguishing it from Quds-Z-0. Sources: Houthi anti-ship missile systems: getting better all the time |
Timeline
Quds-1 land-attack cruise missile Key Events
Abha airport strike
A cruise missile fired by Houthi-aligned forces struck Abha International Airport in southern Saudi Arabia; later analysis identified the weapon as Quds-1 rather than the Ya Ali label initially used by Saudi officials.
Sources: Meet the Quds 1, Cruise Missiles in the Middle East, The Missile War in Yemen
Quds-1 publicly displayed
Houthi forces displayed the Quds-1 at a missile and UAV exhibition in Yemen, presenting it as an indigenous system while outside analysts assessed likely Iranian involvement.
Sources: Meet the Quds 1, Cruise Missiles in the Middle East
Quds-type missiles in Abqaiq-Khurais attack
The Abqaiq-Khurais strike involved Quds-type cruise missiles and loitering munitions; UN and specialist assessments concluded the attack did not originate from Yemen, separating the system's design evidence from the Houthi conflict-use row.
Sources: Cruise Missiles in the Middle East, The UN Exposes Houthi Reliance on Iranian Weapons, CENTCOM maritime seizure briefing
351 components interdicted at sea
U.S. Central Command said USS Forrest Sherman seized components of a 351 land-attack cruise missile during a maritime interdiction, tying the U.S. designation to Quds-type components bound for Yemen.
Sources: CENTCOM 2020 dhow interdiction slides, CENTCOM maritime seizure briefing
Jeddah Aramco strike by follow-on Quds variant
IISS and TWZ linked the November 2020 Jeddah Aramco strike to a Quds missile described by the Houthis as Quds-2, marking the public appearance of a longer-range follow-on variant.
Sources: Cruise Missiles in the Middle East, Yemen's Houthi Rebels Say They Struck Saudi Oil Facility With New Type Of Cruise Missile
Media
Quds-1 land-attack cruise missile Images
Related Weapon Systems
Sources
The Missile War in YemenPublisher: CSIS Missile Defense Project | Note: Supports Quds-1 dimensions, speed, range, propulsion, 351 designation, Iranian-supply assessment, and 2014 Yemen Civil War direct use including Abha, Shuqayq, and August 2019 Abha attacks. | Accessed: 2026-07-01Cruise Missiles in the Middle EastPublisher: International Institute for Strategic Studies | Note: Supports 351/Quds background, likely Iranian origin, July 2019 display context, and 2014 Yemen Civil War direct use including the June 2019 Abha attack and November 2020 Jeddah Aramco strike. | Accessed: 2026-07-01Meet the Quds 1Publisher: Arms Control Wonk | Note: Supports 2014 Yemen Civil War direct use in the June 2019 Abha airport attack, the July 2019 Houthi display, Quds-1/Soumar visual distinctions, and TJ100-type propulsion context. | Accessed: 2026-07-01A trace of the Quds in Tehran?Publisher: Arms Control Wonk | Note: Supports background on Quds-1 design lineage: a 2018 IRGC Imam Hossein University wind-tunnel model resembled the Quds-1 and shared features closer to Quds than Soumar. | Accessed: 2026-07-01Covert Shores Iranian cruise missilesPublisher: Covert Shores | Note: Supports background and technical identification: Quds-1 is described as outwardly similar to Kh-55/Soumar but smaller, with a TJ100-type turbojet, fixed wings, and a simplified booster. | Accessed: 2026-07-01CENTCOM 2020 dhow interdiction slidesPublisher: U.S. Central Command | Note: Supports background on the 351 designation and maritime interdiction evidence: USS Forrest Sherman seized components of a 351 land-attack cruise missile on 25 November 2019. | Accessed: 2026-07-01CENTCOM maritime seizure briefingPublisher: U.S. Department of War | Note: Supports background on 351 land-attack cruise missile components seized at sea and their consistency with missiles used in the September 2019 Aramco refinery attack. | Accessed: 2026-07-01The UN Exposes Houthi Reliance on Iranian WeaponsPublisher: The Washington Institute for Near East Policy | Note: Supports background on UN-linked Quds-1 findings, including TJ100-type engine identification, the assessed external production context, and a disassembled Quds-1 among material seized from an Arabian Sea dhow. | Accessed: 2026-07-01Yemen's Houthi Rebels Say They Struck Saudi Oil Facility With New Type Of Cruise MissilePublisher: TWZ | Note: Supports Quds-2 variant context, the November 2020 Jeddah Aramco strike claim, and background connecting Quds-1 missiles to the September 2019 Saudi oil-infrastructure attacks. | Accessed: 2026-07-01Iran Solidifies Missile Support to the HouthisPublisher: Iran Watch | Note: Supports Quds-family variant context: Quds-3 appeared in a 2022 Houthi parade and was described as identical to earlier Quds-1 and Quds-2 variants used against Saudi civilian targets. | Accessed: 2026-07-01Houthi anti-ship missile systems: getting better all the timePublisher: International Institute for Strategic Studies | Note: Supports Quds-family relationship context: Quds-Z-0 and Sayyad are described as Paveh/Quds-based anti-ship cruise missiles with different seeker configurations. | Accessed: 2026-07-01Land-Attack Cruise Missiles of Various CountriesPublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Supports public-domain image provenance for the primary gallery illustration used here as a comparative land-attack cruise-missile diagram. | Accessed: 2026-07-01Cruise Missile ComparisonPublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Supports public-domain image provenance for the secondary gallery illustration used here as a comparative cruise-missile diagram. | Accessed: 2026-07-01