“Our capability to upgrade drones is unstoppable.”
By David Hellerman, World Israel News
Iran released a video showing what it said was an underground base housing 100 aerial drones on Saturday.
The video said the base was located at an undisclosed spot in the Zagros Mountains, an area spanning almost all of western Iran.
“No doubt the drones of Islamic republic of Iran’s armed forces are the region’s most powerful,” army commander Maj. Gen. Abdolrahim Mousavi said. “Our capability to upgrade drones is unstoppable.”
The timing of Iran’s announcement comes amid rising tensions in recent days.
On Friday, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) seized two Greek tankers in the Persian Gulf. The seizure — in international waters — was apparently in retaliation for Greece’s seizure of a Russian ship carrying Iranian crude oil in April.
The video also comes on the heels of a mysterious explosion on Wednesday at the Parchin military facility. The New York Times reported that the complex, which develops technology for Iran’s missile, drone and nuclear programs, was hit by suicide drones. One Iranian engineer was killed and another in the explosion.
The Times report did not indicate who was responsible for explosion. Israeli officials did not comment.
Earlier in May, a senior IRGC officer, Col. Hassan Sayyad Khodaei, was assassinated in his car in broad daylight by two assassins on a motorcycle.
Reports indicated that Khodaei was the deputy commander of the IRGC’s Unit 840, which is said to be responsible for abductions and assassinations around the world. In recent years, Iranian plots against Israelis have been thwarted in Cyprus, the United Arab Emirates, Ethiopia, Kenya and Columbia.
Other sources told the Times that Khodaei was a key figure in providing Hezbollan and Iranian proxies in Syria with advanced drone technology and tactical advice.