IRGC unveils missile city, warns of response beyond region

On Tuesday, November 10, Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps showed off a new underground "missile city" holding ballistic and cruise missiles and their launchers. Senior commanders used the event to warn that any new attack on Iran would bring a response reaching past the Middle East. The display came as Qatar works to mediate between Tehran and Washington, and as the US weighs further military action after its strikes on Qeshm Island earlier this month.al-monitor.com+1

Inside the facility

The IRGC-affiliated Tasnim News Agency said the armed forces chief of staff, Maj. Gen. Ali Abdollahi, and the IRGC Aerospace Force commander, Brig. Gen. Majid Mousavi, attended the unveiling. Iranian media released a six-minute film of the two generals riding through the tunnels in a jeep. Among the weapons on display were the Fattah, which Iran calls a hypersonic missile, and the long-range Khorramshahr. Some weapons were blurred out. Officials did not say where the site is or when the visit took place.telegraph.co.uk+2

The Jerusalem Post said the site could not be independently verified and might not be new. Analysts who studied the footage saw maneuvering reentry vehicles and missiles mounted on what looked like commercial trucks.jpost.com

Warnings beyond the region

"If the enemy makes another move against us, our response will extend beyond the region," Abdollahi said. Mousavi said that if necessary, Iran would bring enemy "capacities in the region and beyond under our fire".iranintl.com+2

IRGC spokesman Brig. Gen. Hossein Mohebbi said earlier that the Guards had quickly moved missile and drone production lines from surface sites into "missile production cities" deep underground. He said this would let manufacturing continue even under heavy bombardment. Tasnim said the unveiling was part of the IRGC's Aerospace Force Week, and that more achievements would be shown during the week.tasnimnews.ir+1

Diplomacy and lingering conflict

The display was a direct reply to Israeli claims. In March, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Iran had "no ability to produce ballistic missiles". Satellite imagery reviewed by Reuters in February showed Iran repairing missile bases damaged in last year's war with Israel.iranintl.com+1

On the same day, the IRGC navy said it had stopped two tankers trying to pass through the Strait of Hormuz, which Iran has kept closed since February 28. In Washington, after meeting Qatar's prime minister, President Donald Trump said "Iran militarily is effectively over." He said renewed US strikes were "highly unlikely" but that the US remained "locked and loaded".telegraph.co.uk