Iran has resumed parts of its drone production during the six-week ceasefire that began in early April, signaling a rapid effort to rebuild military capabilities damaged by US-Israeli strikes, the CNN repoted on Thursday, citing sources familiar with US intelligence assessments.
Multiple sources told CNN that Tehran’s military recovery is proceeding far faster than initially anticipated.
The rebuilding of military capabilities, including replacing missile sites, launchers and production capacity for key weapons systems destroyed during the current conflict, means that Iran remains a significant threat to regional allies should President Donald Trump restart the bombing campaign, the four sources familiar with the intelligence said.
The move calls into question claims about the extent to which US-Israeli strikes have degraded Iran’s military in the long term, according to the CNN.
While the time to restart production of different weapons components varies, some US intelligence estimates indicate Iran could fully reconstitute its drone attack capability in as soon as six months, one of the sources, a US official, told CNN.
“The Iranians have exceeded all timelines the IC had for reconstitution,” the US official said.
The news network noted that drone attacks are a particular concern for regional allies.
⚡️🇺🇸🇮🇷 CNN: U.S. intelligence assessments indicate Iran has already restarted parts of its drone production during the six week ceasefire that began in early April, with officials saying Tehran is rebuilding some military capabilities faster than initially expected.
— Global Surveillance (@Globalsurv) May 21, 2026
Iran is also… pic.twitter.com/uHyBqa45ee
“If hostilities resume, Iran could augment its missile production capability — which has been significantly degraded — with more drone launches, to continue firing at Israel and Gulf countries that are well within range of both weapons systems,” it added.
Trump has repeatedly threatened to resume combat operations against Iran if the two countries fail to reach a deal to end the war, including saying publicly on Tuesday that he’d been an hour from restarting bombing, “meaning these military capabilities could come into play,” the CNN said.
Iran has been able to rebuild much faster than expected due to a combination of factors, ranging from support it is receiving from Russia and China to the fact that the US and Israel did not inflict as much damage as the two countries had hoped, one of the sources told CNN.
For example, China has continued to provide Iran with components during the conflict that can be used to build missiles, two sources familiar with US intelligence assessments told CNN, noting: though that has likely been curtailed by the ongoing US blockade.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told CBS last week that China is giving Iran “components of missile manufacturing” but declined to elaborate further.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun denied the allegation during a press conference, calling it “not based on facts.”
Meanwhile, Iran also still maintains ballistic-missile, drone-attack and anti-air capability despite the serious damage inflicted by US-Israeli strikes, the CNN said, citing recent US intelligence assessments, “meaning the quick rebuilding of military production capacity isn’t starting from scratch.”
Source: CNN (edited by Al-manar Website)