Recent US military operations against Iran have involved extensive use of precision-guided bunker-buster munitions, including 5,000-pound penetrators, to target and collapse entrances to deeply buried underground facilities used for storing and launching missiles. CENTCOM has publicly shared footage and statements confirming strikes on these hardened subterranean targets to degrade Iran's ability to project power. However, satellite imagery analyzed during fragile ceasefires shows Iranian crews methodically clearing rubble, removing earthen berms, and excavating blocked tunnel entrances at sites near Isfahan and in coastal mountain bases, effectively restoring launch capabilities in a high-tech game of whack-a-mole. This aligns with longstanding Iranian engineering of extensive 'missile cities' carved into mountains, designed to survive aerial bombardment through depth, reinforcement, and redundancy.

The campaign highlights underreported aspects of modern subterranean warfare: even advanced penetrators struggle against certain rock formations and require high volumes of munitions for effective sealing, accelerating depletion of US stockpiles. Defense analysts note that the conflict has consumed hundreds of Tomahawk cruise missiles, thousands of precision bombs, and a significant portion of THAAD interceptors, with production rates unable to match expenditure. This strain, occurring amid proxy escalations involving Iranian-backed groups, raises concerns about readiness for potential peer conflicts, such as with China over Taiwan, where similar munitions would be critical. Mainstream coverage has focused on immediate tactical successes but often glosses over the attrition dynamics and Iran's demonstrated resilience in rebuilding access to its buried arsenals within weeks. The episode underscores a broader truth in heterodox military analysis: underground networks shift the cost curve in favor of the defender, turning expensive precision strikes into a war of industrial endurance that few nations can sustain indefinitely.