Iran's claim of downing American drones raises crucial questions

ISTANBUL

Iran's claim that it shot down American drones has raised some questions, which could potentially change the course of the Middle East conflict.

Iran’s semi-official Tasnim News Agency reported Thursday that the country's air defense shot down two American MQ-9 drones in its southern city of Shiraz.

The report said the Iranian Army "successfully detected, targeted, and destroyed" two American MQ-9 drones, while sharing photos of the destroyed drone.

However, several open-source intelligence platforms suggested that one of the downed drones was Chinese-made.

Defense Security Asia reported that debris shown near Shiraz seemed to correspond not to an American MQ-9 Reaper, but "increasingly appears to match" Chinese Wing Loong II operated by Saudi Arabia or the UAE.

Iranian claims also raised questions on whether Gulf countries such as Saudi Arabia or the UAE were taking part in the US-Israeli military offensive against Iran which began on Feb. 28, triggering retaliation by Tehran.

Iranian claims as well as the identity of the drones could not be independently confirmed by Anadolu.