The US military can confidently claim to have destroyed about a third of Iran's vast missile arsenal, as the US-Israeli war against the country in the Middle East nears its first month.
Points of attention
- The US military claims to have destroyed approximately one-third of Iran's extensive missile arsenal during the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.
- Despite significant damage and destruction, Iran still possesses a considerable number of missiles, many of which may be inaccessible or buried in underground facilities.
Iran lost a third of its missile arsenal
This was reported by Reuters, citing five people familiar with US intelligence.
The status of about a third is now “less clear,” sources said, but continued Iranian bombing has likely damaged, destroyed or buried missiles in underground tunnels and bunkers.
One of the interlocutors said that US intelligence on Iran's capabilities to use drones is similar, and added that there is "some confidence" in destroying about a third of them.
It is noted that this previously unreported assessment shows that while most of Iran's missiles are either destroyed or inaccessible, Tehran still has a significant missile arsenal and may be able to recover some buried or damaged missiles after the cessation of hostilities.
In addition, the new US intelligence data contradicts public statements by US President Donald Trump, who on March 26 expressed the opinion that Iran has "very few missiles left."
One source said that part of the problem is determining how many Iranian missiles were stored in the country's underground bunkers before the start of this war.
The US has not disclosed its estimate of the size of Iran's pre-war missile arsenals.
However, according to Israeli military estimates, Iran had 2,500 missiles, and some experts believe it could be as high as 6,000 missiles.
