Iran's Revolutionary Guard Says It Has Lifted Its 2,000km Limit on Ballistic Missiles

Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), one of the country's military organisations, says it has lifted a limit of 2,000km on the range of its ballistic missiles. Ballistic missiles are rockets that travel along a largely unpowered arc after their engines cut out, and range is the distance they can cover before landing.

The 2,000km limit was self-imposed, meaning the corps set it for itself. The IRGC spokesman, Brigadier-General Hossein Mohebbi, announced the change at a news conference in Tehran, the Iranian capital. Al Jazeera reported his remarks on the matter, including his statement: "This limitation has been lifted for us."

Mohebbi said Iran would show its capabilities through action, not statements. He did not give further details on the range of the missiles or on the types of weapons involved.

The announcement concerns the range that the corps has set for its own missile programme. It is a statement by a military body rather than a change to any written agreement, and the IRGC has not published a new range figure.