Washington said Iran’s ability to carry out missile and drone attacks has dropped sharply in recent weeks, even as fighting involving the US and Israel against Iran continues into a third week.
US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told reporters that Iran’s missile attack rate has fallen by about 90% from earlier levels, while drone attacks are down around 95%. He also claimed Iran’s ballistic missile production centres have been destroyed, leaving it unable to manufacture new missiles, and said its naval and air capabilities have been rendered ineffective.
Despite the US assessment, some military experts and analysts have raised concerns that Iran may not have used its full arsenal. They warned Tehran could be storing “catastrophic” weapons in underground tunnels for a major final strike.
According to these analysts, a coordinated launch using Iran’s remaining strength could threaten energy facilities across West Asia and cause wider damage to the global economy.
Responding to the warnings, Hegseth said the US is not willing to leave any opening and has drawn up what he described as an unprecedented large-scale strike plan to pre-empt any hidden stockpiles, aiming to destroy weapons at their launch sites before they can be fired.
