Special to WorldTribune.com

JERUSALEM — Israel’s military has determined that a blast at an
Iranian base could have significantly damaged the nation’s missile
production capability.

Officials said an explosion on Nov. 12 that rocked an Islamic
Revolutionary Guard Corps base outside Teheran harmed the nation’s ballistic
intermediate-range missile program. They said the IRGC base, located about
40 kilometers from Teheran, was the leading developer and producer of
Shihab-3 missiles and its variants.

“The blast in the site, where surface-to-surface missiles were
developed, can delay or bring to a complete halt the production of the missiles at that site,” Israeli Brig. Gen. Itai Baron, head of Military Intelligence’s research division, said.

The release of Baron’s testimony was unusual for the Knesset committee. Usually, the committee releases few if any details from intelligence briefings.

In a Nov. 28 briefing to the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense
Committee, Baron said the IRGC base was deemed a major missile facility. He cited the death of Iran’s missile defense program chief, Gen. Hassan Moghaddam, believed to have helped design a nuclear warhead.

“It must be emphasized, however, that Iran has other development sites other than the one that was destroyed,” Baron said.

Officials said the IRGC base at Bid Kaneh could have been instrumental
in assisting Iran’s nuclear warhead program. They said Iran would continue
with the program as well as uranium enrichment regardless of United Nations
sanctions.

“The nuclear program will continue to progress despite the mounting
pressures in Iran, and the worsening economic situation that might undermine
the stability of the regime,” Baron said.

The Institute for Science and International Security appeared to confirm
the Israeli assessment. On Nov. 28, ISIS presented satellite images (pictured above) of the
IRGC compound at Bid Kaneh that showed extensive damage to most of the
buildings.

“ISIS learned that the blast occurred as Iran had achieved a major
milestone in the development of a new missile,” ISIS said. “Iran was
apparently performing a volatile procedure involving a missile engine at the
site when the blast occurred.”

  Bid Kaneh, Brig. Gen. Itai Baron, Gen. Hassan Moghaddam, Institute for Science and International Security, Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, Report: Iran missile arsenal said hit hard by Nov. 12 blast at IRGC base