After claiming successful missile test against US carrier, Iran shifts doctrine toward striking first

Iranian state media has announced a sharper military doctrine: Tehran “will take action against threats, even if the threat has not yet been launched.” The message followed claims by Iran’s security chief, Mohsen Rezaei, that a newly developed ballistic missile had successfully been tested against a US aircraft carrier.

The report did not clarify whether Rezaei was referring to the solid-fuel Qasem Basir missile. Iranian accounts describe the weapon as having greater range, improved accuracy, and a half-ton warhead. It was first displayed publicly last year, with a stated range of up to 1,200 kilometers.

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will take action against threats, even if the threat has not yet been launched

Rezaei said the missile had been tested for the first time in a naval operation and had directly targeted US warships. He called it a special-munitions test that “created hell for America and forced US Navy ships to flee the Persian Gulf.” The test was reportedly conducted simultaneously by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Aerospace Force.

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created hell for America and forced US Navy ships to flee the Persian Gulf

The IRGC said a series of ballistic missiles targeted a US carrier and destroyer that had been enforcing a maritime blockade against Iranian tankers. In a statement published by Iran’s IRNA news agency, it claimed both warships were damaged and withdrew from the area of operations. The IRGC also said US Central Command had acknowledged that two US Navy ships came under attack.

The United States had said on the previous Saturday that ballistic missiles targeted its warships and that it responded by bombing three Iranian tankers. Experts cited by Gulf News described an alleged attack on a US carrier as a dangerous escalation, since Iran had previously targeted commercial vessels at sea. The IRGC warned that continued US military action would trigger a “heavier” response from Iran’s armed forces.

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heavier