Iran has reportedly restored a significant portion of its underground missile infrastructure despite extensive U.S. and Israeli airstrikes aimed at crippling its strategic military capabilities. Newly released satellite imagery indicates that Iran has successfully reopened 50 of the 69 tunnel entrances damaged during the conflict, allowing access to key underground missile facilities.
According to an investigative report by CNN, the joint U.S.-Israeli attacks carried out on February 28 were initially believed to have severely weakened Iran’s missile network. However, recent satellite images suggest that Tehran has moved swiftly to rebuild tunnels connected to its 18 underground missile cities located across the country. Reconstruction efforts reportedly began immediately after the ceasefire, with military engineering units working to restore critical infrastructure.
During the conflict, coalition forces focused on missile launch sites, tunnel entrances and access routes, causing landslides and blocking several underground facilities. Satellite images now show Iranian crews using heavy machinery, including bulldozers, loaders and dump trucks, to clear debris and rebuild roads needed for missile transportation and deployment.
Defense analysts say that while airstrikes can temporarily disable tunnel entrances and surface infrastructure, destroying missile stockpiles hidden deep beneath mountains remains a major challenge. Experts believe Iran continues to possess operational missile launchers and trained personnel capable of conducting future missile operations.
Military assessments suggest that more than 1,000 ballistic and cruise missiles may still be stored within Iran’s extensive underground network. Analysts attribute the resilience of these facilities to decades of investment in hardened subterranean military complexes designed to withstand large-scale aerial attacks.
The findings have renewed debate over the effectiveness of the U.S.-Israeli campaign, which also targeted missile manufacturing plants, rocket-fuel production facilities and electronic component industries. While U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth previously stated that Iran would face significant challenges in rebuilding its damaged defense infrastructure, the rapid restoration of key facilities has emerged as a fresh strategic concern for Washington and its allies in West Asia.