It’s not just about importing missiles. Iran has an affordable and accurate one of its own

In the latest attacks on US bases in the Gulf, the regime in Tehran is reported to have begun drawing on its stockpile of more modern ballistic missiles. According to some military analysts, Iran appears to be “using fewer of its older missiles derived from Soviet Scuds or North Korean Nodongs”, said Jeffrey Lewis of the James Martin Centre for Nonproliferation Studies to the Financial Times; these are far less accurate than those launched in recent weeks. Among these is the Kheibar Shekan, which the Wall Street Journal has described as “the workhorse of Tehran’s arsenal: a cheap, mobile and accurate weapon with a range of at least 1,500 kilometres”. The satellite-guided missile, with which – according to US officials – Tehran is testing combinations of different flight trajectories, manoeuvres and speeds, takes its name from the Battle of Khaybar in 628, when Muslims led by Muhammad conquered the fortified oasis north of Medina inhabited by Jews.

The main difference between the Kheibar Shekan and other weapons in Iran’s arsenal lies in its fuel (solid rather than liquid) and the speed with which it can be armed and positioned on launchers. Some variants are also reportedly equipped with an explosive warhead fitted with a motor that can separate during the final phase of launch, enabling it to correct its trajectory as it approaches the target at a speed of nearly ten thousand kilometres per hour.  Judging by the latest attacks, the tactic employed by the Tehran-based armed forces is to launch, in the same areas, not only Kheibar Shekan missiles but also drones and less sophisticated missiles, in order to wear down the air defences of the Gulf states. Furthermore, the Kheibar Shekan is significantly cheaper than American interceptors, costing between 2 and 15 million dollars depending on the system.

The production line for this model of ballistic missile, introduced in 2022, was located in a number of underground facilities targeted by Israeli-American attacks following the launch of Operation Epic Fury. Yet satellite imagery and analyses of the munitions used by Tehran show that the regime has not only been able to reopen the underground bases, but has also resumed firing from some of them. According to the New York Times, by May all the missile sites located near the Strait of Hormuz were reportedly back in operation, with activity resuming in almost 90 per cent of the underground facilities. Some of these are said to have been covered with concrete barriers to protect them from future air strikes. Jacob Judah wrote in the Financial Times that the fragile ceasefire which came into force in April and the constraints imposed by the reduced intensity of the US campaign, together with Israel’s absence from the latest fighting, “may have given Iranian troops time to operate more methodically” and rebuild the missile sites, and that their ability to rapidly restore their capabilities “poses a threat”.