"Iran’s Missile Dilemma: The Hidden Struggle Behind Tehran's Delayed Response to Hamas Leader’s Assassination"

Military experts discussed Tehran's ballistic missile array on the network and the difficulty the Islamic Republic faces in preparing them for launch. According to a military analyst, the prolonged time required to set up the missiles may be a delaying factor for Iran's response.

Iran repeatedly threatens a military response against Israel following the assassination of Hamas' political bureau chairman, Ismail Haniyeh, threats that put the Middle East on the brink of a regional war with unknown outcomes.

Iran has a variety of possible weapons to respond against Israel, and the Iranian attack on Israeli territory in April provides a glimpse into the response options available to the Islamic Republic. Now, security experts worldwide point to a difficulty Iran faces precisely with its most effective weapon, a difficulty that might explain the long wait time between the assassination and any Iranian action.

Iran's ballistic missile array is one of the most developed in the world, including several technological branches of development that have been ongoing for years, leading to several impressive and fearsome weapons. Among dozens of models, three missiles are particularly relevant for firing at Israel: the Shahab-3, an Iranian development of the North Korean Nodong missile, and its two upgraded versions, the "Ghadr" and the "Emad." Additionally, Iran boasts a solid-fuel ballistic missile called "Khaibar Shikan" with a tremendous range of over 2,000 kilometers.

These are very difficult-to-intercept missiles, with multiple warheads and the ability to deceive defense systems. Iran used them during the attack on Israel in April alongside older missiles. Of the hundreds of munitions fired at Israel by Iran, only a few ballistic missiles managed to hit Israeli territory without being intercepted. Iran fired between 110 and 130 such missiles, most from its territory and a small number from Yemen.

A US military expert explains: "I think much of Iran's limitation stems from the number of launchers it has. Even if you have 2,000 missiles and only a hundred mobile launchers, you can only fire a hundred missiles in one volley." The expert explains that the missile models in Iranian hands are a development of a Soviet concept, requiring the launch of missiles from a mobile launcher rather than from launch pits or pre-prepared cartridges, as the American army does.

This means that it takes a long time to set up the missile for launch, fuel it, and bring it to a state of launch readiness. The expert claims that it can take a skilled Iranian crew at least six hours to prepare such a missile for launch, and a less skilled crew almost a day. It is unclear how many mobile launchers Iran possesses and even less so the level of training and capability of the crews. The expert believes it took the Iranians several days to prepare for the launch towards Israel in April and that they would struggle to maintain such a firing rate over time if the Iranian response escalates into an exchange of blows.

The prolonged process of preparing a large number of ballistic missiles for launch may be behind the time it takes for the Iranians to respond to the assassination that occurred almost a week ago or at least serves as an encouraging factor for Tehran's psychological campaign, which causes damage to Israel's economy in front of its people.

Via Israel HaYom