Unexpected Resistance: Why Iran Didn’t Collapse Quickly
- Guerrilla Warfare: From Classical ‘Hit and Run’ to Modern Adaptations
- Historical Roots of Guerrilla Tactics in Warfare
- Underground Military Infrastructure: Iran’s Strategic Innovation
- Economic Warfare as a New Guerrilla Strategy
- The ‘Horizontal Escalation’ Doctrine Explained
- Cost Asymmetry: Cheap Drones vs Expensive Missiles
- Global Impact: Oil Prices, Protests, and Political Pressure
Lessons for the Future: A New Paradigm in Asymmetric Warfare
Explore how Iran is using new forms of guerrilla warfare—underground bases, economic tactics, and drone strategy—to counter powerful adversaries.
A new form of guerrilla war
By Justice Markandey Katju
When American and Israeli forces attacked Iran, one would have thought the Iranians would quickly surrender and the war would be over in a few days. After all, Iran is a relatively underdeveloped country, and was not expected to withstand for long an attack by the most powerful industrial and military nation in the world.
But what has actually happened is quite different. The war, begun by the US-Israeli sneak attack ( even when negotiations were going on in Geneva ) on 28th February 2026, has been going on for 5 weeks now, with no sign of an Iranian surrender. Rather, attacks by Iranian missiles and drones on Israel and US bases and assets in Middle Eastern countries continue unabated, causing astonishment to the whole world and consternation to the aggressors.
How does one explain this ?
It is trite that to fight against a more powerful enemy, one has to resort to guerrilla war and avoid direct confrontation.
Thus, in the American War of Independence ( 1775-81 ) guerilla war was often used by the Americans against the British army
In fighting Napoleon, the Spaniards resorted to hit-and-run tactics, making Napoleon speak of the 'Spanish ulcer'.
When Napoleon invaded Russia in June 1812, the Russian commanders Generals Barclay de Tolly and Mikhail Kutuzov kept retreating into the depths of Russia, instead of having a head on confrontation with the much more powerful Grande Armee, and also resorting to scorched earth tactics and partisan war
The Chinese Red army used guerrilla war as their main tactics in fighting against the Japanese, as did the Vietnamese in their fight, first against the French and then against the Americans.
The traditional method of guerrilla war was hit-and-run tactics. But new situations have led to creation of different forms of guerrilla warfare to deal with the new situations.
For instance, the Iranians are fighting the much more powerful US-Israeli forces using guerrilla tactics, but of an entirely different kind. Let me explain.
(1) Hitherto, guerrilla warfare, that is, hit and run tactics, was used against an enemy which attacked by using ground troops. In fact, there were no aircraft at the time of the American War of Independence and the Napoleonic wars ( the first aircraft was invented only in 1903 ).
The Japanese too used mostly ground troops in their invasion of China from 1937 ( most of their planes were used in fighting the Americans in the Pacific Theatre ).
However, in the Vietnamese War, the Americans used jet bombers and helicopters on a large scale, while the Vietcong and NVA forces in the south had only ground troops. Consequently, the Vietnamese built deep tunnels below the ground ( e.g. in Cu Chi ) where their troops would be safe from air attacks.
It seems that the Iranians have learnt from the Vietnamese, like good disciples. They realised that their air force could be quickly destroyed by US and Israeli jets, and their military assets e.g. missile and drone launchers, would be quickly destroyed by US-Israeli air power if based on the surface of the ground.
Hence for a long time they had been building whole cities deep underground ( some say as deep as 300 feet underground ), where American-Israeli bombs could not reach. From these places the Iranians launch their missiles and drones. Factories for manufacturing missiles and drones, and research facilities, are also said to be situated there.
This is a new form of guerrilla war, and shows the intelligence and creativity of the Iranians.
(2) Another form of guerrilla war being used by the Iranians is economic warfare. By closing the Strait of Hormuz they have made prices of oil and gas, and the cost of living, rise for the ordinary Americans, who have consequently launched massive 'No Kings' protests in most cities of America. This is bound to erode the will of the US Government, as it happened during the Vietnam War.
The Vietnam War did not affect the world economy, but the Iranian War has done that, by raising oil and gas prices everywhere. For instance, as of April 2026, LPG cylinder prices in India have surged due to supply disruptions and rising global oil costs caused by the US-Iran conflict
This has made the US-Israeli war on Iran unpopular everywhere
(3) A third new form of guerrilla war being used by the Iranians is what Robert Pape has called the escalation trap and 'horizontal escalation'
This means hitting by Iranian missiles and drones of US bases and assets in all Middle Eastern countries having them.
Some people may think that this increases the number of Iran's enemies, as Middle Eastern countries will become hostile to Iran. But what such people forget is that while the governments of such countries are pro-American ( being US puppets ), their people are very anti-American, and such people are gradually coming to the help of Iran, as they regard Iran as their saviour, which will help them throw off the American yolk.
So this horizontal escalation actually helps the Iranians.
(4) Iran's missiles and drones are cheap, costing about $ 20, 000 each, while American missiles, including interceptors, are very expensive, costing millions of dollars each
In this way the Iranians are financially bleeding the Americans, with Trump seeking $ 1.5 trillion for defence
Thus, Iranians have created new forms of guerilla warfare, which has set an example which could be used by relatively backward countries everywhere against powerful foes.
(Justice Markandey Katju is a former Judge of the Supreme Court of India, and former Chairman of the Press Council of India. The views expressed are his own.)
