Satellite Photos Reveal Major Expansion at 2 Iranian Ballistic Missile Facilities; U.S. Fears They’re ‘Being Used for Boosting Missile Production’

Satellite photos have revealed significant expansion at two major Iranian ballistic missile facilities, sparking fears that they might be used to bolster missile production.

Knewz.com has learned that the latest images show over 30 new buildings at the Modarres military base and the Khojir missile production complex.

The facilities are overseen by the elite Iranian paramilitary organization Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps which plays a significant role in the nuclear and missile programs of the nation.

Three Iranian officials have anonymously confirmed that the two facilities, both located near Tehran, are being expanded to increase the production of conventional ballistic missiles.

Another anonymous official in the nation mentioned that some of the new buildings constructed during the expansion will be used as drone production facilities

Notably, Iran already has the largest arsenal in the Middle East, one that experts believe features 3,000 missiles—including those that can be fitted with nuclear warheads.

The anonymous Iranian source mentioned that the missiles produced in the facilities will be supplied to the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah, while drones will be supplied to the Yemen-based Houthi rebel organization.

Furthermore, the facilities will also supply drone and missile components to Russia, possibly for use in the Ukraine war.

It was previously reported that Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a deal with Iran in October 2022, wherein the Middle Eastern nation agreed to provide Russia with surface-to-surface missiles and an arsenal of drones, including the Shahed-136 kamikaze drone Russia has extensively used in the war.

It is worth noting that Putin recently conveyed his congratulations to Iranian President-elect Masoud Pezeshkian over the phone and both leaders "expressed their satisfaction with the current high level of bilateral neighbourly relations."

The Iranian President-elect also agreed to establish personal contact with Putin in 2024 as both sides "reaffirmed their commitment to closely work together to further develop mutually beneficial cooperation in various areas."

Jeffrey Lewis of the Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey and Decker Eveleth, an associate research analyst at the Washington-based think tank CNA, analyzed the satellite photos of the two Iranian missile facilities captured in March-April 2024.

Their analysis is part of the Middlebury Institute's project to monitor the Iranian missile infrastructure.

Based on his analysis, Lewis believes that the expansion project began at the Khojir missile production complex in August 2023 and at the Modarres military base in October 2023.

The satellite photos show large berms, or raised strips of land, around some of the structures of the expanded facilities. These structures will prevent an explosion in one of the buildings from spreading the fire to nearby facilities, thus minimizing damage.

Lewis further pointed out that Russia is "on the hunt" for low-cost production of ballistic missiles, and has turned to Iran and North Korea as a result, as reported by Reuters .

United States officials have pointed out that Iran's supply is what sustains the Russian missile strikes in Ukraine .

Regarding the latest development, a U.S. National Security Council spokesperson mentioned that America has several measures in place to bottleneck the production and export of Iranian missiles and drones.

Amidst concerns that the expanded missile facilities will help boost the Russian repertoire of ballistic missiles, Bloomberg recently cited anonymous Western officials who claim that Putin has turned to China for the cheap and rapid production of Shahed-like attack drones .

Chinese military websites and several other media outlets have also stated that the nation is developing a new kamikaze drone named the Sunflower 200, which looks similar to the Iranian Shahed-136 drones.