Firing Up

Report: Iran Appears to Restart Long-Range Missile Program

Researchers believe they’ve discovered a secret desert facility.

Iran appears to have restarted its long-range missile program at a secret desert facility, according to a report in The New York Times. A team of California-based weapons researchers believes it has stumbled across evidence of a secret facility operating in the remote Iranian desert. Researchers at the International Institute for Strategic Studies said work on the site is often carried out under cover of night and focuses on rocket engines and rocket fuel. They say their analysis of structures and ground markings at the facility strongly suggest that it’s developing the technology for long-range missiles. “The investigation highlights some potentially disturbing developments,” said Michael Elleman, a missile researcher who reviewed the material, adding that it could the first steps “for developing an ICBM five to 10 years down the road.” The press officer at Iran’s United Nations mission declined to comment on the findings.