How strong is the Iranian military? Its missiles, soldiers, and proxy forces

Iran, which experts believe runs the largest ballistic missile program in the Middle East, struck Israel in an attack described by the international press as 'unprecedented.'

Iran's attack on Israel was assessed by experts as 'ambitious'; on the other hand, the country possesses the capability and range to strike more targets throughout the entire Middle East.

According to data from the Israel Defense Forces, Iran used nearly 200 ballistic missiles in its attack.

The Iranian military consists of two main branches: the Armed Forces and the Revolutionary Guards.

IRANIAN ARMED FORCES

Iran, which has a population of 87 million, has a military manpower of 41 million. The army has approximately 600 thousand active-duty personnel. The number of reserve troops is around 350 thousand.

The annual budget of the Iranian Armed Forces is at the level of 9 billion dollars. This figure remains significantly behind the budget of Israel, which spends nearly 25 billion dollars annually on military expenditures.

The Iranian Air Force possesses 551 aircraft, the majority of which are equipped with older technology.

On the other hand, the army's most prominent strength is its armored vehicles. Iran has more than 65 thousand armored vehicles. Meanwhile, Israel has about 43 thousand vehicles equipped with 'higher quality equipment.'

In terms of the number of tanks, which is considered another important indicator, Iran is also ahead of Israel. While the Iranian army has nearly 2,000 'older model' tanks, Israel has around 1,400 tanks.

REVOLUTIONARY GUARDS

The dominant branch of the Iranian Armed Forces, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (Revolutionary Guards).

It was established shortly after the 1979 Islamic Revolution, following the overthrow of the US-backed Pahlavi dynasty.

The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps was activated to provide extra protection for the new regime and as a counterweight to the regular armed forces.

The Revolutionary Guards report directly to Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

It is estimated that the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has an army of approximately 125 thousand personnel, including land, naval, and air units. Some analysts, however, believe this figure is much higher.

The Guards also oversee the 'Basij' religious militia, a government-affiliated volunteer paramilitary force frequently used to suppress anti-government protests.

According to Globalfirepower, analysts say the number of Basij volunteers could be in the millions.

REVOLUTIONARY GUARDS' INTELLIGENCE ORGANIZATION 'QUDS FORCE'

The Quds Force is the external espionage arm of the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, which exerts significant influence over its allies in the Middle East. This organization also possesses a paramilitary nature.

The top commander of the intelligence organization, Major General Qasem Soleimani, was killed in 2020 in a drone strike carried out by the U.S. in Iraq.

The Revolutionary Guards, designated as a terrorist organization by the U.S., are highly influential outside of Iran. The group, which engages in conflicts abroad through the Quds Force, fought against ISIS in the 2010s.

In 1982, the Revolutionary Guards founded Lebanese Hezbollah with the aim of exporting Iran's Islamic Revolution and fighting against Israeli forces that had invaded Lebanon that same year.

WHAT ARE THE REVOLUTIONARY GUARDS' MILITARY CAPABILITIES?

The Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps possesses land, air, and naval capabilities and also oversees Iran's ballistic missile program, which experts consider the largest in the Middle East.

The Guard has previously used missiles to strike ISIS militants in Syria and Northern Iraq.

Furthermore, the U.S., European countries, and Saudi Arabia held Iran responsible for the 2019 missile and drone attack that crippled the world's largest oil processing facility in Saudi Arabia.

Iran had denied any involvement in the attack.

With the participation of the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps in conflicts in Syria and Iraq, it has emerged that the group possesses extensive conventional combat equipment.

Experts believe that the Revolutionary Guard has the capability and range to strike any target in the Middle East region with its stockpile of cruise and ballistic missiles.

According to the Office of the Director of National Intelligence of the United States, Iran is the country with the largest inventory of ballistic missiles in the region.

IRAN'S MISSILES

Iran's semi-official news agency ISNA had previously published details of missiles it said could reach Israel.

Among these is the Sejil, which can reach speeds of more than 10,500 miles per hour and has a range of 1,550 miles.

Another missile, the Kheibar, has a range of 1,240 miles, while the Haj Qasem can reach targets 870 miles away.

Iran states that its ballistic missiles serve as a significant deterrent and retaliatory force against the U.S., Israel, and other potential regional targets. Based on this, it argues that it does not need to build nuclear weapons.

In August 2022, Iran announced that it had produced an advanced unmanned aerial vehicle named Mohajer-10, which has a range of 1,240 miles.

The Iranians claimed that the UAV could carry a payload of up to 300 kg and fly for up to 24 hours.

According to the official IRNA news agency, in the summer of 2023, Iran unveiled its first domestically produced hypersonic ballistic missile, as announced by officials.

Hypersonic missiles can fly at least five times the speed of sound and follow a complex trajectory, which makes them difficult to intercept.

IS CHINA HELPING IRAN IN MISSILE PRODUCTION?

The Washington-based non-governmental organization Arms Control Association states that Iran's missile program is largely based on North Korean and Russian designs and that it also receives assistance from China.

It is noted that Iran's short- and medium-range ballistic missiles include the Shahab-1, which has an estimated range of 300 kilometers.

Furthermore, Iran's inventory includes cruise missiles such as the Kh-55, which is capable of being air-launched, has nuclear capacity, and can reach ranges of up to 3,000 km.

The advanced anti-ship missile Khalid Farj, which has a range of approximately 300 kilometers, can carry a 1.1-ton warhead.

Iran has not played a direct role so far in the Gaza conflict that began a year ago. However, the country supports groups that attack Israel, U.S. interests, and Red Sea shipping.

AXIS OF RESISTANCE

Groups established with decades of Iranian support define themselves as the 'Axis of Resistance' against Israeli and US influence in the Middle East.

The axis includes the Palestinian group Hamas, as well as the Hezbollah movement in Lebanon, the Houthi movement in Yemen, and various armed groups in Iraq and Syria.

Speaking to 12punto, Prof. Dr. Barış Doster had described Hassan Nasrallah, the Hezbollah leader assassinated by Israel, as the 'most important link in the axis.'

For this reason, Israel's attacks may have dealt damage to the Axis of Resistance that will be very difficult to compensate for.

Lebanon's Hezbollah was founded in 1982 by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps to fight against Israeli forces that had invaded Lebanon that year.

According to Sky News, the group, which possesses heavy weaponry and is also an influential political actor, may be more powerful than the Lebanese state itself.

Yemen's Houthis have also long maintained friendly relations with Iran.

The movement announced its involvement in the Gaza war at the end of last October by launching drones and missiles toward Israel, and later attacked ships in the southern Red Sea.

The U.S. believes that the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps has helped plan and execute Houthi missile and drone attacks. However, Iran denies any involvement in the attacks.

The Houthis also reject claims that they are an Iranian proxy.