Iran Tests Drones in Military Exercise

Drones are seen during a large-scale drone combat exercise of Army of the Islamic Republic of Iran, in Semnan, Iran January 4, 2021. Picture taken January 4, 2021. Iranian Army / WANA (West Asia News Agency)/Handout via REUTERS
Drones are seen during a large-scale drone combat exercise of Army of the Islamic Republic of Iran, in Semnan, Iran January 4, 2021. Picture taken January 4, 2021. Iranian Army / WANA (West Asia News Agency)/Handout via REUTERS
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Iran Tests Drones in Military Exercise

Drones are seen during a large-scale drone combat exercise of Army of the Islamic Republic of Iran, in Semnan, Iran January 4, 2021. Picture taken January 4, 2021. Iranian Army / WANA (West Asia News Agency)/Handout via REUTERS
Drones are seen during a large-scale drone combat exercise of Army of the Islamic Republic of Iran, in Semnan, Iran January 4, 2021. Picture taken January 4, 2021. Iranian Army / WANA (West Asia News Agency)/Handout via REUTERS

Iran launched exercises featuring a wide array of domestically produced drones on Tuesday, Iranian media reported, days after the anniversary of the US killing of a top Iranian general by a drone strike in Iraq.

Iran’s armed forces are to test combat drones used as bombers, interceptors and in reconnaissance missions in the two-day exercises in central Semnan province, the semi-official Fars news agency said.

Beyond surveillance, Iranian drones can drop munitions and also carry out a "kamikaze" flight when loaded with explosives and flown into a target, according to a US official who spoke to Reuters last year.

Iran has developed a large domestic arms industry in the face of international sanctions and embargoes that bar it from importing many weapons.

Western military analysts said Iran often exaggerates its weapons capabilities, though concerns about its long-range ballistic missile program contributed to Washington leaving Tehran’s 2015 nuclear pact with world powers.

The exercises coincided with increased tensions between Iran and the US, two days after the first anniversary of the killing of Iranian general Qassem Soleimani in a US drone strike at Baghdad airport, and two weeks before President-elect Joe Biden takes office. Biden aims to revive the nuclear agreement, though diplomacy is expected to be tricky.

On Monday Iranian forces seized a South Korean tanker in the Gulf, and Tehran also announced plans to increase uranium enrichment.



Avalanche Hits Group of Skiers in Italy's Piedmont Alps, Killing 3

Birds fly as the snow-capped peak of Mount Terminillo is seen from Rome during sunset, Italy, January 12, 2025. REUTERS/Yara Nardi
Birds fly as the snow-capped peak of Mount Terminillo is seen from Rome during sunset, Italy, January 12, 2025. REUTERS/Yara Nardi
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Avalanche Hits Group of Skiers in Italy's Piedmont Alps, Killing 3

Birds fly as the snow-capped peak of Mount Terminillo is seen from Rome during sunset, Italy, January 12, 2025. REUTERS/Yara Nardi
Birds fly as the snow-capped peak of Mount Terminillo is seen from Rome during sunset, Italy, January 12, 2025. REUTERS/Yara Nardi

An avalanche hit a group of five skiers in Italy’s northern Piedmont region on Sunday, killing three of them, rescuers said.
Two survived and were transported to the hospital by helicopter, The Associated Press reported.
The avalanche hit around midday on the eastern face of Punta Valgrande, a summit on the border between Italy and Switzerland.
The skiers who died were dragged downhill for several hundred meters (yards), suffering fatal injuries.
An alert had been issued in the area above 2,100 meters (6,900 feet), warning of “considerable danger of avalanches.”