Iran’s Revolutionary Guards say they are building underground weapons sites

The announcements came from IRGC spokesperson Hossein Mohebbi at a news conference in Tehran on Saturday, Iranian media reported. Among the achievements listed was an “underground missile city” set to be unveiled, according to the semi-official Tasnim news agency. Mohebbi said the IRGC had rapidly transferred its missile and drone production lines from the surface to underground facilities, which he said allowed Iran to continue producing missiles while adversaries assumed its stockpiles were dwindling.

The statements come as mediation efforts have stepped up recently, with regional countries hoping to bring the war to an end. The war was launched on February 28, prompting Tehran to close the Strait of Hormuz and triggering a global energy crisis.

Mohebbi also outlined advances in stealth technology, saying such improvements had allowed Iranian missiles and drones to pierce air defence systems and accurately strike targets during earlier rounds of fighting with the US and Israel. “Today, every weapon used by the IRGC Aerospace Force is manufactured using homegrown knowledge and expertise. Moreover, our products are not even derived from reverse-engineering captured enemy war material,” Iran's IRNA news agency quoted him as saying. The Wall Street Journal has reported that Iran caused billions of dollars in damage to US bases across the Middle East during previous rounds of fighting, while Reuters has reported that Iran successfully targeted Gulf infrastructure on at least 135 occasions during the same period, causing billions of dollars in damage and lost revenues.

Mohebbi warned on Saturday that restrictions on the range of Iranian missiles had been lifted. The warning follows a statement from Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei that there would be “no geographical limits” to Iran's response if it were attacked again by the US and Israel.

On Friday, President Donald Trump said the US military launched limited strikes on Iran's Qeshm Island, while claiming Washington had made “a lot of progress” in talks with Iran. Tehran has repeatedly warned that it will target Gulf energy infrastructure if the fighting resumes, which would likely push energy prices higher. Washington has imposed additional sanctions on Iran, further straining the country's economy and forcing it to adopt new trade routes. On Saturday, US Central Command announced it was establishing a new task force to support efforts to prevent Iran using land routes to transport advanced weapons and other materials. The US has also imposed a naval blockade on Iran to prevent it from exporting oil.