How big a threat is Iran's military now? | Global News Podcast

Wed, 03 Jun 2026 04:06:41 +0000

The US and Iran have traded strikes, as negotiations to extend their ceasefire drag on without a resolution. On Monday, Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said it had targeted an air base used by US forces. It also threatened to open "new fronts" in the conflict, and keep the Strait of Hormuz closed, in response to Israel's offensive in Lebanon.

So how great a threat does Iran's military pose to the US and its allies, after more than three months of war?

President Donald Trump has repeatedly said that Iran's forces have been "decimated". But new analysis by the BBC has found that Iran has damaged at least 20 US military sites across the Middle East since the start of the war - suggesting the attacks are more extensive than publicly acknowledged. Using cheap drones, Iran has targeted American military equipment worth millions of dollars including THAAD batteries.

Iranian forces have also reportedly reopened several missile sites damaged early in the conflict.

We ask Merlyn Thomas from BBC Verify and Parham Ghobadi from BBC Persian about Iran's military capacity and what it means for the chances of a deal between Washington and Tehran.

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00:00 Introduction
00:47 How much damage has Iran done to US bases?
01:36 Iran's cheap drone warfare
02:34 Iran re-opens missile sites, reportedly
03:55 US tries to limit analysis of the conflict
05:05 What Iran's military capacity means for negotiations
06:51 How Iranian civilians feel