IRGC Shoots Down US MQ-9 Reaper Drone Over Bushehr Province Near Strait of Hormuz

Iran’s Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) has shot down a US General Atomics MQ-9 Reaper drone near the Strait of Hormuz, intercepting the aircraft over the city of Jam in Bushehr Province as military confrontations between Tehran and Washington continued to escalate on Wednesday.

In its official statement, the IRGC declared: “During the ongoing aerial engagements in the Strait of Hormuz, an MQ-9 drone that intended to approach and intervene in the battle zone from the skies over the northern Persian Gulf was struck and destroyed by fire from the heroic fighters of the IRGC’s modern air defense forces in the skies over the city of Jam in Bushehr Province.”

The drone intercept came as part of Iran’s broader retaliatory campaign following US strikes on Iranian assets near the Strait of Hormuz — attacks Tehran says were carried out under the false pretext of a crashed US Army Apache helicopter. Earlier in the day, the IRGC launched drone and missile strikes against the US Navy’s Fifth Fleet headquarters in Bahrain, as well as US military facilities in Jordan and Kuwait. Arab media outlets reported at least 16 explosions in Bahrain following the Iranian operations.

An informed Iranian military source reported that preliminary assessments from satellite imagery and field intelligence indicated significant operational success, with 70% of the planned targets in the early morning operation confirmed as successfully struck.

In response, the US Central Command (CENTCOM) said it had targeted Iranian air-defense positions, surveillance radar installations, and command facilities near the Strait of Hormuz, stating it had “completed self-defense strikes.” CENTCOM characterized the operation as “a proportional response to recent attacks on US forces and international commercial ships transiting regional waters,” adding that “US forces remain vigilant and postured to defend against unjustified Iranian aggression.”

However, images emerged showing that US strikes had targeted drinking water reservoirs in the Bemani district of Sirik County in Hormozgan Province. The managing director of the province’s Water and Wastewater Company confirmed that the attacks destroyed two concrete reservoirs with capacities of 500 and 2,000 cubic meters, along with related mechanical infrastructure serving the town of Kuhestak and ten surrounding villages. Water supply to the area has been severed entirely. “Unfortunately, following this attack, access to clean water for 20,000 honorable people in this region has been cut off,” the official stated. “Given the air temperature of 45 to 50 degrees, conditions for residents of this district have become very difficult and critical.”

Iran’s Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters, which coordinates joint IRGC and Army operations, described the overall counterstrikes as a “powerful [retaliatory] assault” and issued a firm warning that any renewed US aggression against the Islamic Republic would trigger “heavier and more extensive strikes” against a pre-designated list of targets across the region. Iranian officials maintained that all military actions taken by the Islamic Republic represent defensive measures in response to foreign attacks and are aimed at protecting the country’s sovereignty.