Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said it intercepted and destroyed a US MQ-1 Predator drone after it allegedly entered Iranian territorial airspace over the country's territorial waters early on Sunday, according to a report by Mehr News.
In a statement cited by Mehr News, the IRGC's public relations office said the drone, which it described as belonging to the "aggressor American military," was detected after it entered Iranian airspace in the early hours of Sunday.
The IRGC claimed its air defence systems immediately tracked the drone and targeted it with advanced surface-to-air missiles before it could carry out what it described as a planned hostile operation.
Mehr News reported that following the incident, the IRGC Air Defence issued a warning, saying Iranian airspace over the country's territorial waters remains under full control and that any future incursion would be met with a decisive response.
ALSO READ: Iran's IRGC Claims It Shot Down US' MQ-9 Drone, Fired At Intruding F-35 Fighter Jet
The reported interception comes days after the IRGC said it had shot down a US MQ-9 Reaper drone on May 26 after detecting what it described as hostile aircraft violating Iranian airspace.
According to Al-Jazeera that cited local Iranian media, the IRGC claimed that its forces shot down an RQ-4 drone and fired at an intruding F-35 fighter jet last week.
The MQ-1 Predator is a medium-altitude, long-endurance drone developed by American defence company General Atomics. Introduced in the 1990s, it was among the first UAVs capable of conducting both surveillance and strike missions, reshaping modern military operations.
Initially built for reconnaissance and intelligence gathering, the MQ-1 was later equipped with AGM-114 Hellfire missiles, allowing it to track and engage targets remotely. It was widely used by US forces in Afghanistan, Iraq and other conflict zones.
The drone is about 8.2 metres long with a wingspan of 16.8 metres and can stay airborne for over 24 hours. Equipped with electro-optical and infrared sensors, it provides real-time day-and-night surveillance and intelligence to military commanders.
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