Such devices were first described in the international media in July 2008 . In July 2008 Major General Jeffery Hammond , the commander of the 4th Infantry Division and commander of U.S. forces in Baghdad , called the lob bomb " the greatest threat right now that we face . " The type of improvised launch system and a rocket is not new to warfare . The Provisional Irish Republican Army developed a similar system during the Troubles . It was used in the February 1991 attack on 10 Downing Street , the London office and home of the British prime minister . New types of IRAMs including Volcano IRAM and Elephant Rockets , are used during Syrian Civil War by rebels and government
February 1991 attack on 10 Downing Street
Downing Street mortar attack
Lob bomb