Pakistan test-fires short-range missile

A handout picture released by the Pakistani military shows the first test-flight of the newly developed Short Range Surface to Surface Multi Tube Ballistic Missile Hatf IX (NASR), at an undisclosed location in Pakistan yesterday

Pakistan yesterday tested a short-range ballistic missile capable of delivering conventional and atomic warheads, the military said. The launch of Hatf IX, also called Nasr, was conducted by the military’s strategic missile group from an undisclosed location. “Nasr surface-to-surface ballistic missile can carry both conventional and nuclear weapons over a distance of 60km with high accuracy,” an army spokesman said. President of Pakistan Asif Ali Zardari and Premier Yousuf Raza Gillani congratulated the scientists and engineers on their “outstanding success.”  Pakistan successfully tested the nuclear-capable cruise missile Hatf-VII Baburin February.