TEHRAN: Iran has images of sensitive Israeli military bases taken by a drone that was launched by Lebanon’s Hezbollah movement and downed by Israel earlier this month, a senior Iranian lawmaker claimed yesterday in the latest boast from Tehran about purported advances in the capabilities of its unmanned aircraft.
The announcement gave no details about the photos — other than calling the Israeli bases “forbidden sites” — but it suggested Iranian drones have the ability to transmit data while in flight. It also appeared aimed at warning Israel about the options for retaliation for any possible strikes on Iranian nuclear sites.
A prominent lawmaker, Ismaeil Kowsari, also was quoted as saying that the Iranian-backed Hezbollah possesses more sophisticated Iranian-made drones than the one downed, including some that could carry weapons. There was no immediate comment from Israeli officials.
“These drones transmit the pictures online,” Kowsari he told the semiofficial Mehr news agency. “The pictures of forbidden sites taken and transmitted by this drone are now in our possession.”
The lawmaker, who heads Parliament’s defense committee, said Hezbollah is “definitely” equipped with more sophisticated drones, but gave no further details.
Hezbollah “won’t announce it as long as it doesn’t see the need to do so ... That’s why we say we will respond to Israel inside (its) territory, should it take any action against us,” said Kowsari, a former commander of the powerful Revolutionary Guard.
Iran’s Defense Minister Ahmad Vahid also claimed on Sunday that Tehran has drones far more advanced than the Ayub unmanned aircraft launched by Hezbollah, saying it was not the “latest Iranian technology, definitely.”
He did not elaborate.
Hezbollah has said the Ayub drone was manufactured in Iran and assembled in Lebanon.
Iran routinely announces technological breakthroughs in its defense program. Last month it claimed to have started producing a long-range missile-carrying drone with a range of 2,000 km.
Iran claims it has drone photos of Israeli bases
