Iran said Tuesday it shot down a US MQ-9 Reaper drone and forced an RQ-4 drone and an F-35 fighter to retreat from its airspace.
Earlier on Tuesday, Iran’s semi-official Fars News Agency reported that US and Israeli aircraft struck Iranian vessels south of Larak Island near the Strait of Hormuz, killing what it described as “several Iranian nationals.”
While the agency did not confirm the exact number of deaths, some media reports said four people were killed in the strikes.
Although Iran did not disclose the date of the clashes, its statement came one day after US Central Command said it conducted “self-defence” strikes on missile launch sites and mine-laying boats in Iran.
“US Central Command continues to defend our forces while using restraint during the ongoing ceasefire,” said Navy Captain Tim Hawkins, a Central Command spokesperson.
“The United States committed a gross violation of the ceasefire in the Hormozgan region in the past 48 hours… Iran holds the US regime responsible for all the consequences resulting from these aggressive and unjustified actions,” Iran’s foreign ministry said in a statement.
Iran’s Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei, meanwhile, said on Tuesday that regional countries would no longer serve as shields for US bases, according to a written statement carried by state television.
“What is certain in this regard is that the hands of time will not turn backwards, and the nations and lands of the region will no longer serve as shields for American bases,” said Khamenei, who has not appeared in public since he took office in March, in a message marking the Eid al-Adha holiday.
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