Iran's Drone Threatens Unknown Recon Plane as It Spies on Iranian War Games

Tehran's drone caught an unknown recon plane trying to spy on Iranian war games held on the Gulf coast last Saturday.

Tehran's Drone Warns Unidentified Recon Plane

War games in Iran had an unwelcome visitor as their exercises were underway before the entry of the New Year, reported Arab News.

The country of origin of the surveillance aircraft was not mentioned in the report. Still, Iranian forces and US forces in the Gulf also engaged in many such confrontations, noted Malay News.

The US forces issued no comment afterward. Iran did their annual joint naval, air, and ground drills in the Gulf region last Friday close to the Straits of Hormuz, a critical point.

During the activities, a P-8 manned intelligence aircraft affiliated with extra-regional forces that wanted to reduce its maximum height to gather accurate information from the exercise zone was forced to abandon the territory by air defense firing a Karrar UAV, citing safety concerns, citing US News.

After this, the US Departments of Defense and State did not respond to comments.

Iranian War Games Proceed Despite Protests

Demonstrations against the authorities, which had been continuing for more than three months, persisted. Social media images showed protest movements in the province and the grand bazaar in Tehran and other major cities and towns. Just after protests that the current regime stifled, a fraction of Tehran's bazaar has been shuttered.

The military tried out its new attack drones around the areas of the Oman Gulf, close to the critical strait of Hormuz, which drew foreign interest.

According to the report, the Ababil-5 attack drone was tested during the wargames for the first time and hit a designated target 400 kilometers away. The Iranian army has been testing UAVs for over ten years.

The US and its allies have targeted these armed UAVs, which are significant issues because of their impact on them, wherein the unmanned vehicles have to pound Ukraine. Kyiv, its proxy, has complained to its western backers due to the efficacy of these autonomous systems.

Last November, Iran said it did supply Russia with drones, and it was supplied before the war in Ukraine, but it said it wants an end to the conflict itself.

The Arabian Gulf, where the Straits of Hormuz is found, is a critical choke point for energy supplies, and approximately a fifth of all oil trade via maritime trade goes through it.

Wargames called Zolfaghar-1401, in which commandoes and airborne troops took part; with jets, helos, military transport planes, and submarines, took part. Missile deployments and air defense are part of the drills as well. Such yearly drills kept the forces in shape and tested armaments as well.

As of mid-September, the country had been shaken by anti-government public protests sparked by the death of a woman detained by the government's morality police. The protests quickly turned into calls to end the government and over 40 years of clerical rule.

Human Rights Activists in Iran, a collective that has closely followed the uproar, estimate that more than 500 protesters were killed, and more than 18,500 individuals have been held in custody. The Iranian authorities haven't yet supplied figures for all those killed or detained. Tehran's drone spied an unknown recon plane attempting to get information from Iranian war games.