IRGC says it captured two US MQM-170 drones over Qeshm Island

Iran's Islamic Revolution Guard Corps (IRGC) said on Wednesday that two United States MQM-170 reconnaissance drones were brought down over southern Qeshm Island by advanced electronic warfare systems operated by its Aerospace Force, according to a statement carried by Mehr News.

The statement said that with these two aircraft, the number of US drones of this type captured by the IRGC has reached four. It described the drones as having been grounded rather than destroyed, indicating that the aircraft were brought under control through electronic means.

The IRGC said the "aggressor US enemy" had once again failed to achieve its objectives through the use of these drones, and it characterized the incident as another entry in what it called the record of Brad Cooper, the commander of US Central Command (CENTCOM), whom the statement referred to as a "terrorist commander." The statement did not provide further details on the timing of the incident, the exact location beyond southern Qeshm Island, or the condition of the captured aircraft.

Qeshm Island lies in the Strait of Hormuz in the Persian Gulf, a waterway of strategic importance for international shipping and a frequent area of military activity involving Iranian forces and the United States. The IRGC's Aerospace Force has previously announced the seizure or downing of foreign drones in the region.

There was no immediate public response from CENTCOM or the US Department of Defense to the IRGC statement. The claim could not be independently verified.

According to Mehr News, the IRGC statement asserted that the operation demonstrated the effectiveness of Iran's electronic warfare capabilities and repeated its description of the US military presence in the region as aggressive.