Iran unveils underground storage facility, claims development of ‘new special missiles’

Iran unveiled an underground missile storage facility and announced Friday that it is manufacturing “new special missiles,” according to Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) affiliated Tasnim news.

Video released on Iranian state TV IRIB on Friday showed IRGC Commander Major General Hossein Salami and Brigadier General Amir Ali Hajizadeh touring the facility.

Hajizadeh called the site a “dormant volcano,” Tasnim reports.

Part of Iran’s operations against Israel in October and April were carried out using this underground missile base, semi-official Iranian media outlet Mehr News reports.

At an event in Iran’s southwestern city of Abadan on Friday, Salami also announced the IRGC Aerospace Force is developing “new special missiles.”

On Monday, General Ali Mohammad Naeini warned Iran will be holding new drills and war games this month that would reveal “missile and drone cities” including an underground city storing missiles and another facility accommodating vessels in the south of Iran, Tasnim reported.

On Friday, Iranian Basij (volunteer) forces held a large-scale exercise involving 110,000 members in the capital, Tehran, Tasnim reports, adding that the Iranian Armed Forces have held several war games in recent days.

Iran aims to project that it has not lost power in the region, despite Iranian backed forces in Lebanon, Gaza and Yemen coming under attack by Israel and the fall of Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad’s regime, an ally of Iran.

“Our deterrence has not been designed on the basis of action from any other country,” Salami said Friday.

In October, Israel said it struck Iranian missile manufacturing sites and aerial defense systems inside Iran in response to earlier strikes launched by Iran on Israel.

At the time, Iran’s foreign ministry called Israel’s strikes a “clear violation” of international law, adding that it is “entitled and obligated to defend itself.”

The US is just days away from swearing in US President-elect Donald Trump, who previously launched a “maximum pressure” campaign on Iran in his first term. US officials have expressed optimism in negotiations on the Israel-Hamas ceasefire deal with hopes of reaching one before Trump takes office on January 20.