FLASHPOINT
Inside the U.S.-Iran Drone War
Iran has long targeted U.S. drones to throw a wrench in American war efforts and lash out at Washington without risking too much retaliation.
Photo Illustration by Lyne Lucien/The Daily Beast/Getty
When Iran blasted a U.S. drone flying over the Gulf out of the sky on Wednesday, it marked the third time this month Iranian forces had taken a shot at American unmanned vehicles and only the latest chapter in a long-running, low-level robot war that spans a decade and several countries.
For at least a decade, Iran and the militants its backs in Yemen, Iraq, and Syria have hacked, shot down, and nearly rammed American drones to evade America’s prying eyes in the sky and register their displeasure with the U.S. without the risk of starting a war. And late Wednesday, Iran claimed to have shot down an American RQ-4 drone flying over Iranian territory. So when did the drone jousting start?
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