Iran Resumes Ballistic Missile Production in Underground Facilities

Iran has reportedly resumed the production of ballistic missiles in underground facilities, a development that undermines a key achievement of the United States and Israel during a recent conflict, according to a report by The Wall Street Journal. The report, citing American and Middle Eastern sources, indicates that Iran is utilizing pre-stockpiled components to restart its missile manufacturing. Currently, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps is primarily assembling new missiles from existing components in limited quantities.

Despite significant strikes on its missile sites and industrial facilities early in the conflict, Iran is actively working to assemble both liquid-fueled missiles, which require fueling shortly before launch, and solid-fueled missiles, which can be stored ready for deployment. This continued production bolsters Iran's ability to sustain a war of attrition, pitting its missile stockpiles against the dwindling supplies of interceptors from the U.S. and Gulf states.

Tal Inbar, a senior analyst at the Missile Defense Advocacy Alliance, stated that "when there are no bombings on the facilities, it is possible to replace damaged infrastructure, acquire new components from other countries and store them in the facilities." He added, "One needs to be extremely naive to think that Iran is not restoring its missile production capabilities."

Separately, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has detected new construction and movement around a fortified underground complex in Iran known as "Mount Makou," according to IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi in an interview with Bloomberg. However, Grossi emphasized that the agency lacks concrete information on the nature of the activities within the site, as inspectors have not yet been granted access to the tunnel complex. These findings are based on remotely reviewed satellite imagery, not physical inspection.