ISTANBUL, Aug 31 — Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) announced on Monday that its air defense forces shot down an American MQ-9 Reaper drone over the Strait of Hormuz, causing the unmanned aircraft to crash into the Persian Gulf.
According to a statement issued by the IRGC public relations office and reported by Iran’s Mehr News Agency, the long-range US reconnaissance drone was targeted early Monday by missile fire from the IRGC’s air defense units. The IRGC praised the continued presence and support of the Iranian public as the primary backbone for the nation’s armed forces following the engagement.
The reported shootdown follows US military strikes on Sunday targeting two Iranian launchers situated on Larak Island in the Strait of Hormuz. A US official told Axios that the operation targeted missile systems allegedly being prepared to launch rockets carrying sea mines into the strategic maritime corridor, marking the first American military strikes on Iranian territory since late July.
Iranian news agency Tasnim reported that preliminary data indicates the Larak Island strike was conducted using unmanned aerial vehicles. The IRGC confirmed that several military personnel and civilians were killed or injured during the attack on the island, vowing that Iranian forces would deliver a firm response to the action.
–NMT
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