Sunday, January 29, 2023

Israel Carries Out Drone Strikes On Iranian Factory On Eve Of Blinken’s Middle East Tour

 An Iranian defense factory was targeted by Israeli drone strikes late Saturday night, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing U.S. officials, an attack that comes amid growing tensions over Iran’s nuclear program and its continued supply of weapons to Russia.

File photo of Iran's Uranium Conversion Facility, just outside the city of Isfahan. ASSOCIATED PRESS
File photo of Iran's Uranium Conversion Facility, just outside the city of Isfahan. ASSOCIATED PRESS© Provided by Forbes

Key Facts

Citing unnamed U.S. officials, the Wall Street Journal reported that the target was a munitions factory and the attack was carried out by small Israeli quadcopters (Israel has not officially claimed responsibility for the strikes).

It is unclear if the munitions factory itself was the target of the attack, as it is located next to an Iran Space Research Center site, which has been sanctioned by the U.S. for its alleged work on ballistic missiles, the report added.

In a statement on Sunday, the Iranian Defense Ministry said a factory in the city of Isfahan was targeted by three drones but claimed that the attack was “unsuccessful.”

Two of the three drones “were caught in traps” and a third one was shot down by air defense inside the factory, resulting in only “minor damage” on the facility’s roof and no casualties, the ministry added.

Israeli media outlets and journalists citing official sources within the country, however, reported that the strikes successfully targeted four different areas of a building linked to Iran’s missile program.

The strikes come on the eve of U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s Middle East tour, which includes visits to Egypt, Israel and the occupied West Bank territory.

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