Iranian ballistic missile operations: 2024–2026


An image posted by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ Tasnim News Agency of an Iranian launcher firing a missile.

Over the past two years, the Islamic Republic has engaged in at least 15 distinct ballistic missile operations from its territory against foreign targets. These attacks, starting in January 2024, ended a one-year pause (2023) in known ballistic missile attacks from Iranian territory. However, the resumption of attacks in 2024, as the Middle East became engulfed in a series of wars and widening cycles of violence after the October 7, 2023, terrorist attacks by Hamas against Israel, continues a trend of increasing Iranian missile operations in the region from 2017–2022.

Utilizing open-source information, including English, Persian, and Arabic language government and (traditional and social) media reporting, FDD’s Iran Program and The Long War Journal compiled a list of direct Iranian ballistic missile strikes from January 2024 to present:

Iranian ballistic missile operations from 2024–2026

Number Date Ballistic Missile Type Quantity Reported Target Purported Strategic Rationale
1 January 15-16, 2024 MRBMs and SRBMs ~15 Iraq (KRG; alleged Israeli intelligence) and Syria (ISIS) Response to killing of Razi Mousavi in Damascus (Dec 2023) and Kerman terror attack (Jan 2024)
2 January 16, 2024 Unspecified; assumed SRBMs or CRBMs Unspecified Pakistan (alleged Jaish al-Adl) Response to Kerman terror attack and Rask terror attack (Dec 2023)
3 April 13-14, 2024 MRBMs ~120 Israel Response to attack against Iranian diplomatic facility in Damascus killing senior military leaders including Zahedi (April 2024)
4 October 1, 2024 MRBMs ~180-200 Israel Response to killing of Haniyeh (June 2024) in Tehran and both Nasrallah and Nilforoushan in Beirut (Sept 2024)
5 June 13-24, 2025 MRBMs and SRBMs ~550-570 Israel; U.S. base in Qatar Response to Operation Rising Lion (Israel) and Operation Epic Fury (US)
6 Feb 28 – April 8, 2026 MRBMs and SRBMs ~1,400+ Israel; U.S. facilities in CENTCOM AOR; Iraq (KRG?), Kuwait; Qatar; Saudi Arabia; UAE, Oman; Jordan and Turkey Response to Operation Epic Fury (U.S.) and Operation Roaring Lion (Israel)
7 April 8, 2026 Unspecified; assumed SRBMs 17 UAE Technically part of Iran’s final flurry of attacks against GCC countries during the war but occurred hours after ceasefire was announced
8 May 4, 2026 Unspecified; assumed SRBMs 12 UAE Response to the U.S. initiating Operation Project Freedom in the Persian Gulf/Strait of Hormuz
9 May 8, 2026 Unspecified; assumed SRBMs 2 UAE Response to U.S. strikes on Iranian military facilities in Bandar Abbas and Qeshm Island
10 June 3, 2026 Unspecified; assumed SRBMs 16 (13 Kuwait, 3 Bahrain) Kuwait and Bahrain Framed as response to U.S. strikes on Qeshm Island, more likely ceasefire breakdown
11 June 5, 2026 Unspecified; assumed SRBMs 10 (7 Kuwait, 3 Bahrain) Kuwait and Bahrain Response to U.S. strikes on coastal radar and surveillance sites near Qeshm and Sirik
12 June 7, 2026 MRBMs ~30 Israel Attempting to compel an end to attacks on Hezbollah by Israel; offensive
13 June 9-10, 2026 Unspecified; assumed MRBMs 5 U.S. facilities in Jordan Response to U.S. strikes following the downing of a U.S. Apache helicopter
14 June 11, 2025 Unspecified; assumed MRBMs 20 U.S. facilities in Jordan Response to U.S. strikes in southern Iran
15 June 27, 2026 Unspecified; assumed SRBMs 7 Kuwait and Bahrain Response to U.S. strikes against coastal defenses and missile/drone storage depots in Qeshm, Goruk/Sirik

Behnam Ben Taleblu is a senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD) in Washington, DC, where he covers Iranian political and security issues. He is the author of Arsenal: Assessing the Islamic Republic of Iran’s Ballistic Missile Program (FDD Press: 2023).

Tags: ballistic missiles, Iran, Iranian Missile Program

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