- Iran’s Revolutionary Guards has shot down a US drone in the southern province of Hormozgan,Iran.
- The drone was unmanned and unarmed.The RQ-4A Global Hawk drone is essentially a high-altitude robot used for surveillance over the ocean and coastal areas.
- This comes after US had blamed Iran for recent attacks on foreign shipping tankers that took place near the Strait of Hormuz.
- Further,Iran has quadrupled its production of low-enriched uranium and threatened to boost its enrichment closer to weapons-grade levels trying to pressure Europe for new terms to the 2015 nuclear deal.
- The United States has also deployed additional troops in the West Asia against the backdrop of increasing tensions with Iran.
- The Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corp was formed after the 1979 Islamic revolution with a mission to defend the clerical regime, in contrast to more traditional military units that protect borders.
- The Revolutionary Guards have amassed strong power within Iran, including with significant economic interests.The Guards’ prized unit is the Quds Force which supports forces allied with Iran around the region including Syrian President and Lebanon’s Hezbollah.
- The United States has recently designated Iran’s elite Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps(IRGC) as a foreign terrorist organization.
Iran Revolutionary Guard shoots down U.S. drone amid tensions
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