Iran unveils deep missile base amid Israeli tension
Iran has announced the existence of another underground missile base. The threat from Israel has led Tehran to hide its most valuable weapons deep underground.
The new Iranian missile base was revealed by the Revolutionary Guard Corps, a branch of the Iranian Armed Forces that is an alternative to the army. The new underground shelter was presented during an inspection conducted by the Corps' commander, General Hossein Salami, who toured a rocket depot with officers.
Video footage from this event was released online, offering a look into the "missile city." The footage shows long corridors filled with rocket launchers.
To effectively protect the equipment from destruction attempts, even by bombs designed to destroy underground fortifications, the depot is reportedly located as far as 500 metres underground.
Operation Days of Atonement
The construction of such facilities seems to be Iran's only means of safeguarding its missile capabilities. The attack on Israel using drones and ballistic missiles prompted a decisive response from Jerusalem in the form of the Days of Atonement operation, which began on October 26, 2024, at 8:00 AM Eastern Time.
The airstrikes conducted during this time demonstrated the superiority of Western weaponry (such as the F-35I, F-16I Sufa, and F-15C/D Eagle aircraft) over the air defence systems developed in the USSR and Russia, which are foundational to Iranian air defence.
Collapse of Iran's air defence
The F-35 aircraft operated freely over Iran, destroying, among other targets, Iranian S-300PMU-2 missile launchers. According to available sources, all four batteries of this system, which Iran owns, were hit. If capabilities in this regard have not been rebuilt, this indicates the elimination of the upper tier of Iran's air defence.
In response, Iran developed the Bavar-373 system, which is presented as comparable to the S-300. However, its capabilities have yet to be confirmed in any significant way.
