Location: Latitude 26° 48' North; longitude 57° 01' East; 1099km southeast of Tehran; province of Hormozgan

Primary Function: Silkworm missile site complex.

Description and Activities:
The facility of Kuhestak is located 1099km southeast of Tehran, in the province of Hormozgan. In 1987, US intelligence sources identified Kuhestak as one of two locations (the other is Qeshm Island) where six land-based anti-ship missiles are deployed.

According to some sources, in 1988 an underground bunker was built in Kuhestak, designed to confound US reconnaissance. From this bunker, Chinese C-801 Sardine missiles are capable of posing a real threat to ships in the Strait of Hormuz.

Key Sources: Associated Press, "New Silkworm Missile Base Reported in Persian Gulf," Journal of Commerce, 2 June 1988, p.1B; accessed via Lexis-Nexis Universe, <http://www.lexis-nexis.com/universe>; Christopher Thomas, "Threat to Gulf Oil," The Times (London), 16 March 1987; accessed via Lexis-Nexis Universe, <http://www.lexis-nexis.com/universe>; Reuters, "Iran Said To Fortify Key Strait," The New York Times, 1 July 1988, p.2; accessed via Lexis-Nexis Universe, <http://www.lexis-nexis.com/universe>.