Iran also emphasizes that some of its drone models have already been launched at Israel over the past year and are intended for a "preemptive strike" against its Israeli enemy. Iran boasts that it develops this capability with the help of lessons drawn from warfare in different world arenas.
Meanwhile, Iran continues to "export" drones to members of the "resistance camp" in Yemen, Lebanon, Syria and Iraq, and uses Yemen as its main testing ground for drones, missiles, cruise missiles and explosive boats, in particular against Saudi Arabia and some of the other Gulf states. Iran also inaugurated a drone factory in Tajikistan to manufacture Ababil-2 drones, a product of the Iran Aircraft Manufacturing Industrial Company (HESA)
A Wide Variety of Drones
As part of Iran's force projection in the region, and to soften the impact of recent security incidents--which include assassinations and mysterious explosions--Iranian TV broadcast1 a report on a "top-secret drone base" located "hundreds of meters underground." The base is in the Kermanshah province in western Iran, which borders Iraq. Drones can be launched against Israel from that location.
Blindfolded, an Iranian TV reporter was taken to "Strategic Drone Base 313." After his blindfold was removed, photographers from Iran's broadcasting authority were not permitted to accompany him. Army photographers took pictures of the base for the report.
The video emphasized that the base contains "more than 100 drones," which include attack, patrol and suicide drones. The reporter said the smaller UAVs are equipped with missile and bomb systems developed in Iran and electronic-warfare systems.
Fars News Agency, affiliated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC), showcased the kinds of drones at the base: Kaman-22, Kaman-12, Ababil-5 (equipped with Qaem-9 missiles, the Iranian version of the American Hellfire), Quds Mohajer 6 (an intelligence, surveillance, target acquisition and reconnaissance drone that can carry four precision-guided munitions),2 Fotros and the Karrar, which carries different kinds of ammunition such as bombs, anti-ballistic missiles and surface-to-air missiles. READ MORE
