Iran's semi-official news agency Fars said Tuesday that the military has test-fired four missiles during a military drill in the strategic Strait of Hormuz.
The report quoted Revolutionary Guard General Ali Fadavi as saying that the missiles hit a "big target" the size of a warship and sunk it within 50 seconds.
According to the report, "The missiles were fired simultaneously at a sea target as large as a warship and sank it in 50 seconds."
Fadavi stated that "Iran's missile systems can reach the entire Persian Gulf coastline and beyond where the US bases are."
It was the first report of an Iranian military exercise taking place simultaneously and close to US-led joint naval maneuvers in thePersian Gulf, including mine-sweeping drills. The drill includes naval forces from Britain, France, Japan and the United Arab Emirates.
The US Navy claims the maneuvers are not directly aimed at Iran, but the West and its regional allies have made clear they would react against attempts by Tehran to carry out threats to try to close critical Gulf oil shipping lanes in retaliation for tighter sanctions.
Fadavi added that the Iranian Navy plans to hold massive naval drills in the Strait of Hormuz until at least mid-2013.
According to Fars, Iran was "closely monitoring the US war-games in Persian Gulf.
"Americans' activities are under our constant watch any moment," Fadavi said. "Based on our latest assessments, 64 US vessels are present in the region, and the Americans claim that 20 of these vessels are participating in the drills."
Iranian navy's drill in December (Photo: MCT)
Over the weekend, Iranian Navy Commander Rear AdmiralHabibollah Sayyari boasted Iran's "intelligence supremacy over US moves in the region," and noted that the Islamic Republic was well informed of the details of the US-led exercise.
"We are well aware of the exact number and the position of the US surface vessels, aircrafts, submarines and minesweeping warships in the region," Sayyari was quoted by Fars as saying.
On Saturday, Iran officially introduced its new air defense system, "meant to confront American warplanes in case of a US attack on the country."
The system was displayed as part of a military parade held in Tehran to mark Sacred Defense Week and the 32nd anniversary of the Iraq-Iran war.
The "Raad," or "Thunder" system, is based on Russian-made S-200 long-range missiles, but now also carries "Taer 2" ("Bird" 2) missiles, which are domestically produced by the Revolutionary Guard.
Iran claims that the system is able to intercept threats at a range of up to 50 kilometers, with the capability of hitting targets at 22,000 meters.
Iranian officials said it is "designed to confront fighter jets, cruise missiles, smart bombs, helicopters and drones."
Ynet News
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