Under the rubble: Iran's hidden arsenal with thousands of ballistic missiles - report
The Wall Street Journal reports that Iran still possesses thousands of medium- and short-range ballistic missiles tucked away in subterranean 'missile cities'
Iran may still possess a significant ballistic missile capability despite heavy wartime losses, according to new intelligence assessments cited by US officials by the Wall Street Journal.
While recent conflict has reportedly destroyed or disabled roughly half of the country’s missile launchers, many of those systems are not permanently lost.
Officials familiar with the assessments say a large number of launchers remain buried within Iran’s extensive underground military infrastructure.
Though some are currently trapped under debris or damaged, they could potentially be repaired and brought back into operation. This means Iran retains the ability to restore parts of its launch capacity faster than previously assumed.
Even with a reduced arsenal, estimates suggest Tehran still holds thousands of short- and medium-range ballistic missiles. Many of these are believed to be concealed in subterranean facilities, allowing them to be redeployed if needed.
While the joint US-Israeli campaign successfully degraded Iran's solid rocket motor production by 80%, the Iranian military still manages a formidable arsenal. Intelligence estimates suggest that while 50% of Iran’s missile launchers are currently destroyed or trapped under rubble, thousands of missiles remain intact.
During the Iran war, the regime launched over 650 ballistic missiles at Israel, and hundreds more drones and missiles at other countries in the Middle East region.