US military shoots down Iranian-made drone over oil site in Syria

The U.S. military announced Tuesday it shot down a drone believed to have been manufactured by Iran as it was allegedly conducting surveillance over an oil site in northeastern Syria.

The drone was taken down at around 2:30 p.m. local time, according to U.S. Central Command.

“US forces in Syria engaged and shot down an Iranian-manufactured UAV attempting to conduct reconnaissance of Mission Support Site Conoco, a patrol base in northeast Syria,” U.S. Central Command said in a statement.

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The U.S. and Iran both carry out counterterrorism missions in Syria, although the two countries support different groups. The U.S. backs a Kurdish-led group known as the Syrian Democratic Forces, which leads an autonomous government in northeastern Syria, and Iran supports the central government in Damascus.

Iran, the Syrian government and Russia have accused the U.S. of exploiting Syria’s natural resources through a military presence the three countries say is illegitimate. And the U.S. says Iran has sought to expand its influence in Syria through support for militias that have targeted U.S. forces in the past.

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The U.S. has also criticized Iran’s drone program over the appearance of Iranian-produced loitering munitions, also called “kamikaze” or “suicide” drones, in Russia’s war ongoing war against Ukraine.

Iran has faced drone attacks on its own soil, including a strike conducted last month allegedly by quadcopters. The Islamic Republic has blamed Israel for the incident and announced Friday the arrest of suspects involved in the operation.