Iran Is Shooting Fewer Missiles at Israel

Iran is firing fewer missiles at Israel each day, suggesting Tehran’s capabilities are being limited by Israeli attacks, or it is conserving what it has left.

Israel says one reason is that it has destroyed more than a third of Iran’s launchers. Iran started the current conflict with around 2,000 ballistic missiles and has fired around 400 so far, according to Israeli estimates. President Trump has also issued threats against Iran, suggesting the U.S. could join the war. Iran could be trying to preserve its weapons if the war expands, analysts say.

Another reason, according to Israeli military officials, is because of Israel’s dominance of Iran’s skies, which gives it the ability to destroy missiles before they leave the ground. Israel has also disrupted Iranian command and control by targeting its commanders, said Yaakov Amidror, a fellow at the Washington-based Jewish Institute for National Security of America.

“Take all the elements together and [the Iranians] still have a huge potential and may use it in the future, but for the time being Israel has degraded their ability to launch big salvos at many times during the day,” Amidror said.