Iran says it shot down foreign spy drone
Officials say aircraft was spotted near Iraqi border. No details given on its origin
Iran’s military shot down a suspected reconnaissance drone in a province on its western border with Iraq, a military official said Saturday.
“A while ago, an unknown drone entered the area and was identified by our monitoring systems,” Farzad Fereydouni, air defence commander for Kermanshah province, told the official IRNA news agency.
The unarmed drone was “engaged and shot down” by Iran’s missile systems, he said, without giving any details on its origin or when it was intercepted.
Iran has claimed to have captured several US drones in recent years, including an advanced RQ-170 Sentinel CIA spy drone in December 2011 and at least three Boeing-designed ScanEagle aircraft.
Iran said last year it successfully tested its copy of the RQ-170 drone based on one it captured. Tehran says it is also copying the ScanEagle.
Also Saturday Tehran unveiled a new surface-to-surface ballistic missile with a 500-kilometer (310 miles) range, Reuters reported.
The Fateh 313 missile was revealed during a ceremony marking the anniversary of Iran’s military industry, attended by Iranian President Hassan Rouhani.
“We will buy, sell and develop any weapons we need and we will not ask for permission or abide by any resolution for that,” Rouhani said in a speech at the ceremony.
Times of Israel staff contributed to this report.