Iran’s Army Navy says it has shot down a US MQ-1 drone using an advanced air defense system near the coastal area of Kuhestak in the country’s southern Hormozgan Province.

In a statement on Friday, the Navy said the drone belonging to the US enemy was intercepted and destroyed by its air defense system operating under the country’s integrated air defense network along the coast of Sirik, east of the Strait of Hormuz.

The statement added that the unmanned aerial vehicle was struck after being successfully tracked by the system in the Kuhestak area along the coast of Sirik.

“We will not hesitate for a moment in safeguarding and defending the territorial integrity, maritime borders, and interests of the Islamic Republic of Iran,” the Army Navy emphasized.

The MQ-1 Predator is a medium-altitude, long-endurance remotely piloted aircraft developed by General Atomics and operated primarily by the US Air Force.

The aircraft has been widely used in US military and surveillance operations across the West Asia region and beyond.

The US Air Force retired its MQ-1 Predator fleet in 2018, shifting to the more advanced MQ-9 Reaper for combat operations.

With Iran’s Armed Forces having inflicted significant losses on the US MQ-9 Reaper fleet during the US-Israeli aggression, Washington has been forced to turn back to MQ-1 drones to sustain its aerial surveillance and reconnaissance operations.

IRGC shoots down 16th US MQ-1 drone over Qeshm Island

The IRGC says its advanced air defense system shot down the 16th US MQ-1 reconnaissance-combat drone over Qeshm Island.

Last Friday, the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps announced that it had downed the 16th MQ-1 drone since the start of the US-Israeli aggression.

Iran has restricted passage through the Strait of Hormuz since the early days of the US-Israeli war on Iran, which began on February 28 and was brought to a temporary halt by a ceasefire in early April following Iran’s retaliatory operations.