Iran Reopens Underground Missile Facilities Amid Ongoing Tensions

Restoration of Missile Facilities

Recent reports indicate that Iran has successfully restored access to numerous underground missile sites after enduring weeks of strikes from the US and Israel. Satellite images analyzed reveal that Iranian teams are actively using heavy machinery, such as bulldozers and dump trucks, to clear debris, reopen tunnel entrances, and repair roads that were damaged during the conflict. Military experts suggest that these developments underscore the difficulties in neutralizing Iran's vast network of underground missile installations, many of which have been under construction for over twenty years. Throughout the conflict, the focus of US and Israeli operations was on targeting tunnel entrances and access routes to these facilities to hinder missile launcher operations. According to the analysis, Iran has reopened 50 out of 69 tunnel entrances that were impacted across 18 missile facilities. For instance, at a missile base located in Dezful, satellite imagery from May 12 indicates that four out of five tunnel entrances have been reopened, with only one still blocked. Additionally, roads that were damaged by airstrikes have been repaired, with images showing that craters meant to restrict vehicle access have largely been filled in and some roads repaved. Analysts note that the pace of these repair efforts has increased since a ceasefire between Iran and the US was established over seven weeks ago.

Iran's Missile Stockpile Insights

What We Know About the Missile Stockpile

Experts estimate that Iran maintains around 1,000 missiles stored within its underground facilities. Given that many of these sites are buried under hundreds of meters of rock, analysts believe that strikes on tunnel entrances are unlikely to have caused significant damage to the missile stockpiles located deeper underground. Timur Kadyshev, a senior researcher at the Institute for Peace Research and Security Policy at the University of Hamburg, stated, "They were preparing for this kind of war for 20 years." Sam Lair, a research associate at the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies, emphasized that Iran still has the capability to launch missiles if hostilities resume, noting, "There's nothing to prevent the launchers from being armed with the ample stockpile of missiles that the Iranians still have." He added, "Iran is in a position to continue launching missiles as long as they have launchers and crews, even if production has halted."

US Perspective on Iran's Missile Program

What Trump Has Said About Iran's Missiles

Former US President Donald Trump has consistently identified Iran's missile program as a primary target for military action. In a post on Truth Social in March, he outlined objectives for the war, including the complete degradation of Iranian missile capabilities and launchers. Alongside missile base strikes, the US and Israel also targeted Iran's missile manufacturing network, which includes facilities responsible for producing electronic components, rocket propellants, and missile bodies. Following a ceasefire on April 8, US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth claimed that Iran's military-industrial capabilities had been significantly weakened, stating, "You'll be digging out your remaining launchers and missiles, with no ability to replace them. You have no defense industry."

Reconstruction Efforts at Missile Facilities

Satellite images reviewed show extensive reconstruction activities at various missile facilities. At a site near Isfahan, where multiple strikes targeted four tunnel entrances, early May images depicted construction crews filling craters and reopening access routes. At another underground missile base close to Khomeyn, at least ten construction vehicles were observed clearing debris from a tunnel entrance in mid-April. Analysts point out that while the strikes caused considerable disruption, the reopening of damaged facilities has required relatively simple equipment and engineering efforts. Kadyshev remarked, "You have to use very sophisticated, very expensive weapons to do this kind of damage, and the recovery is very low tech – it's just bulldozers." US intelligence assessments suggest that Tehran has resumed drone production and is replacing missile launchers and manufacturing capabilities lost during the conflict. A US official noted, "The Iranians have exceeded all timelines the intelligence community had for reconstitution."