Former DM: Iran Would Down More Spy Drones

Condemns Airspace Violations as 'Hostile Act'

Condemning the US use of spy drones for surveillance of Iranian territory, former Defense Minister Read Admiral Ali Shamkhani condemned the activity as a “hostile act” and said Iran won’t sit idly by in the future.

Shamkhani says that Iran will “hunt down” future drones that enter their airspace and will down them the same way they downed the RQ-170 Sentinel last week. The US has “asked” for the drone back, but Iranian officials have pointed out that spying equipment discovered by those being spied on is not traditionally returned.

The drone was downed undamaged using a fake GPS signal. US officials initially claimed it was just watching the Afghan border, but later admitted it flew into Iran to spy on Iranian nuclear sites.

The loss of the RQ-170 is not only embarrassing for the administration but is potentially damaging to America’s technological superiority, as it is believed to have contained a number of advanced technologies which will be reverse engineered by Iranian or other engineers.

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.