Iran is said to have retained about 70% of its pre-war missile stockpile, according to confidential US intelligence assessments reported by the New York Times.
These documents would also indicate that Tehran has regained operational access to 30 of its 33 missile sites located along the Strait of Hormuz. Only three sites would still be completely inaccessible.
These conclusions strongly contradict the public discourse of the Donald Trump administration, which for several weeks has presented the Iranian army as largely destroyed after the American operation Epic Fury.
Less than a month after this operation, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth claimed that Iranian forces had been “decimated” and rendered ineffective for several years. But according to assessments cited by the New York Times, Iran would still retain nearly 70% of its mobile launchers and would have regained access to around 90% of its underground missile storage and launch facilities in the country.
These sites would now be considered partially or fully operational.
The White House strongly rejected this information. Its spokesperson, Olivia Wales, repeated that the Iranian army had been “crushed” and accused those who say otherwise of relaying the propaganda of the Revolutionary Guards.
Donald Trump also reacted on social networks, believing that it was almost “treason” to suggest that the Iranian army was doing well. The Pentagon accused the New York Times of acting as a communications relay for the Iranian regime.
According to the American daily, these evaluations reflect the limits of a tactical choice made during the campaign. Lacking a sufficient number of bombs capable of penetrating bunkers, American planners sometimes chose to block the entrances to Iranian underground sites rather than completely destroy them.
This strategy would have produced mixed results, allowing Iran to quickly regain access to a large part of its infrastructure.
American officials would also have wanted to preserve part of their most powerful munitions for possible future conflicts in Asia, particularly against North Korea or China.
