'US army: Iran is in possession of our spy drone'
US officials concerned Tehran has US's top-secret drone after it went missing during mission in Afghanistan, Fox News reports.
By JPOST.COM STAFF, REUTERS
December 6, 2011 02:23
1 minute read.
US Soldiers, pentagon_311.
(photo credit: Reuters)
Iran
seems to be in possession of the same RQ-170 drone that the Iranian
military said it shot down Sunday, Fox News reported Monday according to American
military sources.
US officials failed to say whether or not Iranians shot the unmanned aerial vehicle down, as per Iranian reports.
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Iran
on Sunday said that its military had downed the drone in an eastern
province. Shortly after those Iranian reports, a NATO official
said that the drone may have been one that went missing during a mission
in Afghanistan the week before.
The Iranian and US reports
differ over whether Iran had managed to take down the top-secret spy
aircraft, and in what condition the Iranian army found that grounded the Sentinel.
The
incident comes at a time when Tehran is trying to contain foreign
outrage at the storming of the British embassy on Tuesday, after London
announced sanctions on Iran's central bank in connection with Iran's
nuclear enrichment program.
Iran has announced several times in
the past that it shot down US, Israeli or British drones, in incidents
that did not provoke high-profile responses.
Also on Monday, British newspaper the Telegraph reported
that the Revolutionary Guard was raising its preparedness for war
fearing a strike after mounting international pressure, and a number of
mysterious explosions that rocked different cities in the country.
Western intelligence officials said that Iran was deploying artillery
and guards to key defensive points, as well as arranging "long-range
missiles" and "high explosives" fearing a potential attack, according to
the Telegraph.
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