Iran’s Space Launch Sites Masquerading Covert Nuclear Operations “`

February 1, 2025 by No Comments

FIRST ON FOX: Intelligence indicates that a clandestine Iranian Ministry of Defense and Armed Forces Logistics agency, responsible for nuclear development, operates from key Iranian space program facilities.

Iran has a history of concealing its nuclear advancements within seemingly commercial ventures, and suspicions have long existed regarding its space program’s dual-use potential in nuclear weapons development.

Sources reveal that evidence gathered over months points to the Organization of Defensive Innovation and Research (SPND), Iran’s leading nuclear development agency, operating from two known space development and launch sites.

“Reports, corroborated by numerous sources, show that SPND recently intensified nuclear warhead construction at both Shahrud and Semnan sites,” stated a National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) report exclusively shared with Digital.

This information originated from individuals associated with the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran and was provided to the NCRI, an Iranian opposition group based in Washington, D.C., and Paris. Alireza Jafarzadeh, the NCRI’s Washington, D.C., office deputy director, first revealed Iran’s covert nuclear program in 2002.

The Shahroud Space Center, previously suspected of involvement by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), now reportedly hosts a substantial SPND presence—a significant concern, according to Jafarzadeh.

The Shahroud Space Center gained international attention in 2022 with Iran’s unveiling of the Ghaem-100 rocket, capable of launching low-orbit satellites and functioning as a ballistic missile with a range exceeding 1,400 miles, surpassing the Qased rocket’s range.

However, sources suggest SPND is developing a nuclear warhead for the Ghaem-100 solid-fuel missile, extending its range to over 1,800 miles, utilizing a mobile launch pad.

The site is heavily secured; personnel cannot drive directly onto the complex, instead using IRGC transport from a checkpoint.

“The Ghaem-100 missile, featuring a mobile launchpad, was created by the IRGC Aerospace Force, modeled after North Korean missiles,” the NCRI report notes. “Its design inherently incorporates nuclear warhead capability. IRGC Brigadier General Hassan Tehrani Moghaddam, the father of the IRGC’s missile program, spearheaded this project.”

The Ghaem-100’s potential payload at an 1,800-mile range remains unclear, falling short of the approximately 3,400 miles needed for intercontinental range.

The second site, the Imam Khomeini Spaceport in Semnan—Iran’s first spaceport—recently launched Iran’s heaviest rocket, carrying a payload of about 660 pounds using liquid propellant.

The NCRI report indicates that this site is used to develop liquid-fuel propellants, such as those used in the Simorgh rocket (range exceeding 1,800 miles), capable of launching heavier satellites and carrying nuclear warheads.

Liquid fuel offers superior thrust, power, and control, despite being heavier than solid fuel and requiring more advanced technology.

“The IRGC Aerospace Force’s Space Command disguises this activity under the guise of satellite launches, providing the regime with independent communications for guiding nuclear warheads,” Jafarzadeh explained to Digital.

The International Atomic Energy Agency recently warned that Iran has accumulated approximately 440 pounds of near-weapons-grade uranium, enriched to 60%—below the 90% needed for a nuclear bomb.

Approximately 92 pounds of weapons-grade uranium is sufficient for a nuclear weapon, meaning Iran could potentially produce five bombs if it further enriches its uranium.

Jafarzadeh cautions against solely focusing on uranium enrichment levels.

“Focusing only on uranium quantity and purity while ignoring bomb construction and delivery systems is shortsighted,” he stated. “All are crucial components in enabling Iran’s mullahs to acquire an atomic bomb.”