TEHRAN – During the 12-day war waged by the U.S. and Israel against Iran last June, the Iranian Armed Forces had to enter their first war in over three decades.

It took them 17 hours to launch the first waves of missile and drone attacks against the occupied territories. They experienced gaps in their air defenses throughout the war and utilized a target list that gave the enemy significant breathing room.

Iranian missiles also demonstrated relatively low success rates during the first four days of that conflict. The country gained proficiency in striking the occupied territories starting from Day 5, firing fewer missiles and drones while achieving greater success in hitting targets.

As of the writing of this report, only four days have passed since Iran began its defense against a second U.S.-Israeli war in a matter of eight months. Yet, everything—from the time Iranians needed to muster a response to the tactics and strategies employed—is significantly different from the very beginning.

This time, it took Iranians less than two hours to begin a response, and that response was far greater than anything executed during the 12-day war. Iran began simultaneously striking not only Israeli positions in the occupied territories but also U.S. bases in regional countries, including Kuwait, Bahrain, the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Jordan, and Iraq. This expanded target list ensures that, after a certain period, the U.S. and Israel will be depleted of interceptors and equipment needed to counter the projectiles.

Iran also engaged its Navy in the war. The country’s naval forces have closed off the Strait of Hormuz and actively destroyed targets. In one instance, the Islamic Revolution Guard Corps (IRGC) Navy managed to kill at least 40 U.S. Marines who were hiding in a location in Dubai through a drone operation.

Furthermore, success rates have been high since the beginning and have only improved, even though the U.S. and Israel have yet to exhaust their interceptors. On Day 4, according to an Iranian journalist based in Beirut, no missile fired at the occupied territories by Iran or its ally in Lebanon, Hezbollah, was intercepted.

“This is very significant,” said Hossein Pak. “It shows that Israel and the U.S. will be completely vulnerable to Iran sooner than we all expected.”

Iran has also made significant progress in protecting its missile launchers, noted Seyyed Mohammad Taheri, a military analyst.

“Over the past few days, the U.S. has targeted some missile bases using B-2 and B-1 strategic bombers. However, learning from the experience of the 12-day war, the Aerospace Force implemented structural changes, rearranging and widely dispersing the missile bases into smaller units scattered across the nation’s geography,” he explained.

This geographic spread and decentralization have significantly lowered vulnerability levels and ensured the operational continuity of Iran’s missile units, he added.

Another improved aspect has been the performance of Iran’s air defense unit. During the 12-day war, it took Iran’s defense units a full day to begin intercepting U.S.-Israeli projectiles. While no air defense system is perfect, during that war, Iran only managed to down around five Hermes drones and, of course, many smaller projectiles.

This time, in only four days, Iran has made history. It managed to down three F-15 fighter jets in Kuwait—an achievement not seen in over 27 years, since a crewed U.S. warplane was last downed during the Kosovo War. It has also downed 20 Hermes drones and three highly advanced MQ-9 drones.

“The production of Iranian defense systems accelerated significantly after the 12-day war, and the number of units equipped with them also increased substantially,” stated Hossein Kasiri Nejad, the head of Tasnim News Agency’s Hebrew service.

The Americans and Israelis appear to have misjudged Iran’s defense capabilities, he added. “The common assumption was that Iran’s defenses would mirror the playbook from the 12-day war, but current operations prove the mechanics have changed. Lessons learned from that past conflict have been applied in recent months, resulting in new equipment and tactics being readied against enemy aircraft, the efficacy of which we are now clearly witnessing.”

A source familiar with Iranian activities over the past eight months told the Tehran Times that Iran intends on making this war the last time the U.S. dares to launch attacks on Iranian territories. It appears the country has been preparing for this since June 24, when the 12-day war ended.