Israel vs Iran — Tank & Missile Analysis

By Kris Osborn, President, Warrior

(Washington, D.C.) The ballistic missile salvo attacking Israel from Iran does raise questions about the size, scope, range, accuracy and technological sophistication of the countries’ arsenal of ballistic missiles, armored ground force and ability to further threaten Iran. When attacking Israel with its ballistic missile arsenal, Iran faces range, precision and guidance challenges, particularly in lights of the Israeli Defense Force’s networked missile defense, ISR and interceptors.

In terms of pure numbers, Iran does have much more artillery and Multiple Launch Rocket Systems (MLRS) when compared to Israel, yet both traditional artillery and 70-to-80km-reaching MLRS would not be in position to strike Israel unless they were moved close to its borders through forward deployment.

At the same time, Iran is reported to operate a large number of Short, Medium and Long-Range Ballistic missiles in position to hit Israel. An examination of Iran’s large ballistic missile arsenal with a mind to guidance and range raises a serious threat possibility to Israel, as Iran appears to now operate at least five different long-range ballistic missiles capable of hitting Israel from Iran. In response to this most recent Iranian attack, senior IDF military leaders are telling CNN on live TV that they were “ready for this,” suggesting that indeed Israeli’s recent experience tracking and intercepting Iranian drone and missile attacks.

Maps of the Middle East show Iranian missiles are easily able to hit Jerusalem and other parts of Israel from locations throughout Iran, as Jerusalem is less than 2,000km from Tehran. This means some ballistic missiles launched from Iran’s capital can hit Israel and an even higher number of long-range weapons can easily hit Israel from other locations within Western Iran.An interesting and quite significant research paper from Iran Watch shows that indeed Iran does possess a massive arsenal of ballistic missiles, at least five of which can reportedly travel distances of 1,300km or more. The famous Shahab-3, for instance, is listed by Iran Watch as capable of traveling 1,300km with a 1,000kg warhead. The liquid fuel, single stage Shahab-3 rocket is now deployed and exists in large numbers. The longest range ballistic missile listed by Iran Watch is the Khorramshahr 1,2, and 4 .. weapons cited as able to travel as far as 2,000 to 3,000km. This means the missile could hit anywhere in Israel from Tehran or most places throughout Central and Western Iran. Other Iranian Medium Range Ballistic Missiles capable of traveling 1,600km or more are the now-deployed Ghadr, Emad and Paveh missiles, according to Iran Watch. The Iranian Sejjil MRBM can travel 2,000km as well.

Iranian Ground Army

While Iran does, at least on paper, appear to have a larger ground force, particularly when it comes to tanks and armored vehicles, that does not in any way mean that its land force would in any way be equivalent to Israel. Globalfirepower’s 2023 military assessments for instance, list Iran as having 4,071 tanks compared to Israel’s 2,200 tanks. However, having 2,000 more tanks than Israeli does not by any stretch ensure military overmatch, as sheer numbers of tanks may prove to be much less of an advantage should a smaller tank force be equipped with vastly superior sensors, weapons, computing and targeting. This may well appear to be the case with even a cursory look at how Israel’s well known and highly regarded Merkava tanks would compare against Iranian upgraded Soviet-era T-72s.

An interesting report in “21st Century Asian Arms Race,” states Iran has German-built Leopard tanks as well as Russian T-90s and even some Abrams. Iran’s first widely reported indigenous tank called the Farrar has emerged in recent years, a platform said to be based upon an upgraded Iranian T-72S chassis. The Iranian tank, reported to operate with an electro-optical fire control system, laser rangefinder and ballistic computer, would at least on the surface appear to most likely be vastly inferior to the Israeli Merkava. The Israeli Merkava is among the most advanced armored vehicles in the world. It can carry infantry or injured soldiers, leverage a rear exit hatch for dismounted operations or safety escape and, perhaps of greatest significance, its main gun tube can itself fire anti-tank missiles, according to a report in The National Interest.