Iran and the U.S. agree that Iran's paramilitary Islamic Republican Guard Corps (IRGC) shot down a U.S. drone early Thursday, but the two countries offered different versions of the type of drone and where it was flying when hit with Iran's surface-to-air missile. Iran said it brought down a U.S. Navy RQ-4 Global Hawk "spy" drone after it crossed into Iranian airspace, but U.S. officials tell Reuters that the MQ-4C Triton reconnaissance drone was in international airspace over the Strait of Hormuz.
Tensions are high between Iran and the U.S. after a series of tanker attacks the U.S. blames on Iran, following punishing U.S. sanctions and efforts to scuttle an international 2015 nuclear deal. IRGC commander Gen. Hossein Salami said in a televised speech that the "the downing of the American drone was a clear message to America" that "our borders are our red line" and "any enemy that violates the borders will be annihilated." Iran doesn't "have any intention for war with any country, but we are fully ready for war," he added.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
Combs convicted on 2 of 5 charges, denied bailSpeed Read Sean 'Diddy' Combs was acquitted of the more serious charges of racketeering and sex trafficking
-
Sniper kills 2 Idaho firefighters in ambushSpeed Read A man started a wildfire, then fired a rifle at first responders when they arrived
-
Weinstein convicted of sex crime in retrialSpeed Read The New York jury delivered a mixed and partial verdict at the disgraced Hollywood producer's retrial
-
'King of the Hill' actor shot dead outside homespeed read Jonathan Joss was fatally shot by a neighbor who was 'yelling violent homophobic slurs,' says his husband
-
DOJ, Boulder police outline attacker's confessionspeed read Mohamed Sabry Soliman planned the attack for a year and 'wanted them all to die'
-
Assailant burns Jewish pedestrians in Boulderspeed read Eight people from the Jewish group were hospitalized after a man threw Molotov cocktails in a 'targeted act of violence'
-
Driver rams van into crowd at Liverpool FC paradespeed read 27 people were hospitalized following the attack
-
2 Israel Embassy staff shot dead at DC Jewish museumspeed read The suspected gunman chanted 'free, free Palestine'
