Iran warns its modified ballistic missiles can reach UK
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Iranian state television has warned that modified versions of the Khorramshahr ballistic missile could reach American military installations in Europe, specifically naming RAF Fairford in Britain as a potential target.
The report, broadcast on Saturday by Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB), stated that “the range of Iran’s missiles is not limited to what they have seen.”
It claimed that modifications to the Khorramshahr’s warhead could increase its range severalfold.
The Khorramshahr-4, unveiled in 2023, has a claimed range of 2,000 kilometers while carrying a 1,500-kilogram warhead; a lighter warhead could extend that distance, though independent verification of any such capability remains absent.
The broadcast reviewed missiles and drones Iran has used in conflicts with ‘Israel’ and the United States since June 2025 and presented the Khorramshahr as part of an arsenal able to threaten more distant American facilities.
Directed at Britain, it suggested that British air defenses were not necessarily more capable than Israel’s, which it claimed Iranian missiles had already penetrated.
The report referenced an order by Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei on October 31 for armed forces to respond to attacks without geographical restrictions and to update target lists.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards had earlier indicated that the country’s longstanding self-imposed 2,000-kilometer limit on ballistic missile ranges had been lifted, without confirming deployment of longer-range systems.
Analysts note that reducing warhead weight on systems like the Khorramshahr could theoretically extend range toward parts of Europe, consistent with earlier Western assessments of lighter-payload variants reaching around 3,000 kilometers.
However, there is no independent confirmation that Iran currently fields a version capable of reliably striking RAF Fairford, a base that has hosted US bomber operations.
The warnings occur amid stalled diplomatic efforts to end the conflict.
Tehran has demanded an end to the US naval blockade of Iranian ports and sanctions relief before talks resume, while Washington continues economic pressure and has indicated it seeks a decisive outcome.
The IRIB report marks a more specific escalation by naming a particular British site linked to a purportedly extended-range Khorramshahr.
