Iran announces end to range restrictions on its ballistic missile arsenal

Iran announces an end to ballistic missile range restrictions, threatens strikes outside of the Middle East.

By World Israel News Staff

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps announced Saturday that the Islamic Republic had abandoned its self-imposed restrictions on ballistic missile ranges, raising the prospect of developing weapons capable of striking targets far beyond the Middle East.

Speaking at a press conference in Tehran, IRGC spokesman Brigadier General Hossein Mohebbi confirmed that Iran was no longer bound by its longstanding policy of limiting the range of its ballistic missiles to 2,000 kilometers (approximately 1,200 miles).

“This restriction has been lifted for us,” Mohebbi declared, according to Iran’s semi-official Tasnim news agency.

The announcement followed a directive from Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, who recently warned that future American or Israeli attacks would be met with retaliation unconstrained by geography.

Khamenei called for an immediate and forceful response to any foreign attack, with “no geographical limits,” according to Iranian media.

The Iranian leader also reportedly ordered the country’s military to expand its database of potential targets, including American and Israeli military, economic and other strategic assets.

Mohebbi emphasized that Iran intended to demonstrate its capabilities rather than merely issue threats.

“Our duty is to show our capabilities on the battlefield,” he said.

The spokesman described Iran’s confrontation with the United States and Israel as an asymmetric conflict in which Tehran could exploit vulnerabilities in its adversaries’ military and economic infrastructure.

He suggested that Iran could strike unexpected targets to disrupt its enemies’ operations, although he did not identify specific locations.

Iran has long maintained that its decision to restrict ballistic missile development to a maximum range of 2,000 kilometers was voluntary rather than the result of an international agreement.

That range is sufficient to strike Israel, American military installations throughout much of the Middle East, and targets in parts of southeastern Europe, including Greece and the Balkans.

Abandoning the restriction could eventually enable Iran to threaten additional European countries and American military facilities located farther from Iranian territory.

However, Mohebbi did not indicate whether Iran had already developed or deployed operational ballistic missiles capable of exceeding the previous limit.

Western assessments have generally placed the maximum range of Iran’s known operational ballistic missiles at approximately 2,000 kilometers, although American officials have repeatedly warned that technology developed for Iran’s space-launch program could support the development of intercontinental ballistic missiles.

During the war earlier this year, Iran reportedly attempted to strike the joint US-British military installation on Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean, approximately 4,000 kilometers from Iranian territory. The reported attack failed, and the incident did not establish that Iran possesses a reliable operational missile capable of reaching that distance.

In separate remarks reported by Iran International, Mohebbi acknowledged that Iran was continuing to improve its missile technology.

“We are constantly improving the range of our missiles, and there is no pause in this work,” he said.

The spokesman also addressed the possibility of changes to Iran’s nuclear doctrine, suggesting that the Revolutionary Guards would prepare for such a shift if the country’s leadership ordered it.

“If the system concludes that it should move in that direction, we will establish the necessary readiness,” he said.

Iran has not formally announced a change to its nuclear weapons policy.

The statements come amid growing fears of renewed large-scale fighting between Iran and the United States, more than eight months after Washington and Jerusalem launched their joint military campaign against the Islamic Republic.

NBC News reported Friday that senior advisers had warned President Donald Trump that his opportunity to renew major military operations against Iran could narrow substantially when the newly elected Democratic-controlled Congress takes office in January.

According to two American officials cited by the network, administration advisers recommended that any major new campaign begin before the congressional transition, when Democrats could seek to restrict military operations through legislation, budgetary measures and investigations.

The president has reportedly not made a final decision on resuming large-scale strikes.

Speaking Friday, Trump acknowledged that American forces had recently conducted a limited operation against Iranian air defenses, describing it as a “minor” strike that destroyed “a little bit of an anti-aircraft device.”

Meanwhile, the US military announced Saturday the establishment of Task Force Iron Gate, a new initiative designed to disrupt Iranian weapons shipments, military procurement networks and sanctioned commerce across the country’s land borders and the Caspian Sea.

The task force, based in Tampa, Florida, will coordinate with multiple federal agencies, including the Treasury, State and Justice Departments, to restrict Iran’s ability to rebuild its military capabilities.

“Strengthening CENTCOM’s collaboration with US interagency partners will further constrain Iran’s ability to finance terrorism, rebuild weapons factories, and replenish their military,” US Central Command chief Admiral Brad Cooper said.

According to a Reuters investigation, Iranian military agencies have imported at least $2 billion worth of equipment and supplies since January 2025 through covert procurement networks involving shipments from Russia, Central Asia and China.

CENTCOM also estimated that the American naval blockade had prevented Iran from exporting more than $25 billion worth of crude oil.

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