Iran made 'mistake' by downing US drone: Trump
June 20, 2019 22:24
President Donald Trump on Thursday said that Iran has made a "very big mistake" by shooting down a United States spy drone, an incident that is likely to further escalate already soaring tensions between Washington and Tehran.
Both the US and Iran said that Iranian forces had shot down an American military surveillance drone, but the two sides offered conflicting details on the incident.
US officials confirmed that a high altitude drone on a surveillance mission over the Strait of Hormuz was hit by an Iranian surface-to-air missile in international airspace.
Iran, however, said its elite Revolutionary Guard shot down an RQ-4 Global Hawk drone as it flew over southern Iran and that the incident sent a "clear message to America".
The US military's Central Command confirmed a US Navy Broad Area Maritime Surveillance (BAMS-D) aircraft was shot down by an Iranian surface-to-air missile system.
The BAMS-D is a RQ-4A Global Hawk High-Altitude, Long, Endurance (HALE) drone that can carry out surveillance and reconnaissance missions over vast ocean and coastal regions, according to the US military.
Iran's Foreign Ministry issued a condemnation of the purported violation of its airspace and warned of a strong reaction to what it called a "provocative" act by the US.
White House press secretary Sarah Sanders said Trump was briefed Wednesday night and again Thursday morning about the incident.
Later, President Trump tweeted: "Iran made a very big mistake!"
Trump's tweet came as his national security officials were huddling to weigh possible responses, CNN reported.
The incident comes at a time of escalating tension between the two countries. -- PTI
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