US military says it shot down an Iranian drone in Arabian Sea
Al Jazeera
CENTCOM says Iranian drone approach USS Abraham Lincoln with ‘unclear intent’ before being shot down.
The United States military says it shot down an Iranian drone that approached a US aircraft carrier in the Arabian Sea, amid continued efforts by regional powers to ease tensions between Washington and Tehran.
In a statement on Tuesday, US Central Command (CENTCOM) spokesperson Tim Hawkins said a US fighter jet from the USS Abraham Lincoln “shot down the Iranian drone in self-defense and to protect the aircraft carrier and personnel on board”.
The Shahed-139 drone was shot down by an F-35C from the Lincoln, which CENTCOM said was sailing about 800km (500 miles) from Iran’s southern coast.
CENTCOM said the drone “aggressively approached” the aircraft carrier with “unclear intent” and it “continued to fly toward the ship despite de-escalatory measures taken by US forces operating in international waters”.
There was no immediate comment from the Iranian authorities on what happened.
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