08:42
Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) claimed on Monday that it downed an American MQ-1 drone over the Strait of Hormuz, intensifying the ongoing military confrontation between Tehran and Washington.
According to Iran's state broadcaster, the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB), the development was announced via a post on X, which stated that the American drone had been downed over the strategic waterway. The report was subsequently carried by several other Iranian state media outlets.
Iranian authorities, however, did not provide further details regarding the incident. There has been no official confirmation or response from the US military or the White House so far.
The development followed hours after US President Donald Trump announced that American forces would reimpose a naval blockade targeting Iran in the Strait of Hormuz, while allowing commercial vessels from other nations to continue using the crucial shipping lane.
Speaking to reporters after signing an Executive Order, Trump stated, "We're hitting them (Iran) very heavily tonight... We have tremendous amounts of ammunition. We're hitting them very hard, and it'll continue, and we'll see what happens. We're knocking out all of their offensive capability, and we're controlling the strait (Strait of Hormuz). We're putting the blockade back. It's a blockade, not for anybody but Iran. In other words, anybody doing business with Iran can't go through. Everyone else will be able to go through... The blockade is probably more effective than hitting them. But I think the combination is the thing that really does it." -- ANI
