Iran’s Revolutionary Guard said it shot down a U.S. drone amid heightened tensions between Tehran and Washington over its collapsing nuclear deal. 

The reported shootdown of the RQ-4 Global Hawk comes after the U.S. military previously alleged Iran fired a missile at another drone last week that responded to the attack on two oil tankers near the Gulf of Oman. The U.S. blames Iran for the attack on the ships, which Tehran denies.

The attacks come against the backdrop of heightened tensions between the U.S. and Iran following President Donald Trump’s decision to withdraw from Tehran’s nuclear deal with world powers a year ago. The White House separately said it was aware of reports of a missile strike on Saudi Arabia amid a campaign targeting the kingdom by Yemen’s Iranian-allied Houthi rebels.

Iran recently has quadrupled its production of low-enriched uranium and threatened to boost its enrichment closer to weapons-grade levels, trying to pressure Europe for new terms to the 2015 deal.

In recent weeks, the U.S. has sped an aircraft carrier to the Mideast and deployed additional troops to the tens of thousands already in the region. Mysterious attacks also have targeted oil tankers as Iranian-allied Houthi rebels launched bomb-laden drones into Saudi Arabia.

All this has raised fears that a miscalculation or further rise in tensions could push the U.S. and Iran into an open conflict, some 40 years after Tehran’s Islamic Revolution.

Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, which answers only to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, said it shot down the drone Thursday morning when it entered Iranian airspace near the Kouhmobarak district in southern Iran’s Hormozgan province. Kouhmobarak is some 1,200 kilometers (750 miles) southeast of Tehran and is close to the Strait of Hormuz.

Iran’s state-run IRNA news agency, citing the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, identified the drone as an RQ-4 Global Hawk.

Capt. Bill Urban, a U.S. Central Command spokesman, declined to comment when asked if an American drone was shot down.

However, he told The Associated Press: “There was no drone over Iranian territory.”

Meanwhile, White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders said Trump had been “briefed on the reports of a missile strike in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.”

“We are closely monitoring the situation and continuing to consult with our partners and allies,” Sanders said.

A Saudi-led coalition has been battling the Houthis since March 2015 in Yemen, the Arab world’s poorest nation now pushed to the brink of famine by the conflict.

Saudi state media and officials did not immediately report a missile strike Thursday.

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards have completed preparations for a large-scale assault on an important Saudi oil facility within days, US intelligence has learnt from a highly credible source, like reported by gdnonline.com.

Israeli website DEBKAfile said that aides of senior US congress members were summoned on Monday to the White House for a briefing on this intelligence and informed that this time the administration is gearing up for a military response.

US-Iranian tensions in the region shot up again after abating for a few days, amid spreading talk of a White House decision to resort to US military action against Iran.

Pentagon sources report that Centcom, in line with its responsibility for guaranteeing security and free navigation in Gulf waters, applied for an extra 6,000 US troops for the region, along with more destroyers, submarines and Patriot air defence batteries.

US President Trump pared this figure down to 1,000 US troops, in addition to the 1,500 he released last month.

Early yesterday, acting Defence Secretary Patrick Shanahan said in a statement: “In response to a request from the US Central Command for additional forces, and with the advice of the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and in consultation with the White House, I have authorised approximately 1,000 additional troops for defensive purposes to address air, naval, and ground-based threats in the Middle East.”

It appears that the data reaching US intelligence has not named which Saudi oil facility is in Iran’s sights for the impending attack, but stressed that it will be a lot more damaging than the previous sabotage operations on six oil tankers.

Saudi Arabia has placed all its oil installations, terminals, ports and oil fields on maximum alert.

Saudi Arabia’s Interior Ministry says two Italians were wounded in the coastal city of Jiddah in what appears to have been a premeditated attack targeting their cars.

Interior Ministry spokesman Maj. Gen. Mansour al-Turki told The Associated Press security forces are pursuing the incident as a criminal act that appears to be centered around a personal dispute.

Al-Turki says preliminary investigations show an explosive device was placed under the gas pedals of two cars, causing the vehicles to catch fire and injuring the drivers, but not the other Italian passengers.

Italian authorities are cooperating in the ongoing investigation.

The U.S. Consulate in Jiddah recently issued a security alert saying it was aware of two car bombings that resulted in several injuries and no deaths.

Acting US Secretary of Defense Patrick Shanahan announced that the US was sending some 1,000 additional troops to the Middle East, like reported by kurdistan24.net.

The new deployment comes as tensions with Iran remain high. As Shanahan affirmed, “The recent Iranian attacks validate the reliable, credible intelligence we have received on hostile behavior by Iranian forces and their proxy groups that threaten United States personnel and interests across the region.”

The US earlier announced two other deployments to the region—on May 5 and May 24, but they have not prevented a series of relatively small scale attacks.

On June 13, two oil tankers were attacked in the Gulf of Oman, just east of the strategic Strait of Hormuz through which much of the world’s oil is shipped.

On June 14, three mortar shells were fired at Iraq’s Balad Air Base, north of Baghdad, where US trainers are posted. The shells, however, caused little damage.

Also on June 14, a rocket fell in Baghdad’s Jadriyah neighborhood, on the east bank of the Tigris. The rocket was likely aimed at the “Green Zone,” on the river’s west bank, where the US embassy is located, but fell short of its target.

Moreover, on June 12, Iranian-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen launched a cruise missile attack on Abha airport in southwest Saudi Arabia. Some 26 civilians were wounded. Subsequently, the Houthis used drones in an attempt to attack the Abha airport again, as well as another airport in Jizan, some 125 miles to the south. However, the drones were shot down before they could reach their targets.

The announcement of the new US troop movement came on the same day that Tehran announced that its stockpile of enriched uranium would soon surpass the limit set in the 2015 nuclear accord—unless Europe did more to restore trade with Iran, which fell dramatically after the US reimposed sanctions following its withdrawal from the nuclear accord.

Shanahan stressed that the new deployment was being made at the request of the US Central Command (CENTCOM) and that it was for “defensive purposes.” It is intended “to address air, naval, and ground-based threats” in the region, he stated, alluding to the broad range of attacks, whether from Iran or its proxies.

“The United States does not seek conflict with Iran,” Shanahan affirmed. “The action today is being taken to ensure the safety and welfare of our military personnel working throughout the region and to protect our national interests.”

Speaking on Sunday to CBS News, Pompeo said, “The United States is considering a full range of options” to deal with Iran.

Asked, “Does that include a military response,” he responded, “Of course, of course.”

On Tuesday, Pompeo is visiting CENTCOM headquarters in Tampa, Florida.

US President Donald Trump has repeatedly said he does not want a war with Iran, but would like to begin negotiations. However, when Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe visited Tehran last week to explore prospects for such talks, he was rebuffed by Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

“I do not see Trump as worthy of any message exchange, and I do not have any reply for him, now or in future,” Khamenei told Abe, according to Iran’s official media.

Satellite images have shown that the Assad regime is constructing a new airstrip for helicopters, which will be used by Iran and Hezbollah reports Zaman Al Wasl.

Zaman al-Wasl has obtained fresh satellite images that show the regime has established a new helipad near Shamsein camp in central Homs province. 

The images show the ongoing construction of a helipad, 550 meters in length and about 150 in width. It is similar to the large runway established by the regime in the village of Istamo after the Russians took over the Hemeimeem airbase.

A military source confirmed that the regime began building this helipad mid-2018, but that it is still not complete. At first glance, some think that this is the civil airport, which the system intends to establish in the city of Homs, but its short length (which does not exceed 550 meters) does not qualify it to be suitable for landing passenger airplanes. 

According to the source, the regime intends to put a squadron of helicopters and two brigades of reconnaissance aircraft at this airport, with Iranian and Hezbollah forces being allowed to also use it. 

The helipad is close to the Third Corps and the Fourth Voluntary Brigade camps.

The current airstrip is located close the headquarters of Hezbollah, near the town of al-Qusayr, which is only 10 km away. It is also adjacent to Lebanese villages loyal to the militia, such as Hermel, as the site lies only 20 km from the Lebanese border.

Homs province did not have any helipads or airports for helicopters in the past, except for the airports of Shayrat and al-Daba’ah dedicated to fixed-wing aircrafts.

Iran says it has summoned the British ambassador over the weekend after the UK publicly came out in support of the White House assessment pinpointing Iranian forces behind last Thursday’s two tanker attacks in the Gulf of Oman, like reported by zerohedge.com.

Last Friday Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt said the attacks were “almost certainly” carried out by Tehran. Hunt also warned of the “great risk” of Iran drifting toward war against the US and its allies during a television interview.

Crucially, Britain is set to deploy 100 Royal Marines to the Persian Gulf in order to form a “rapid reaction force” to protect UK assets in the region.

According to the Sunday Times:

Military sources said that 100 marines from 42 Commando, based near Plymouth, will form a rapid reaction force, Special Purpose Task Group 19. They will operate from ships patrolling the region from Britain’s new naval base in Bahrain.

The marines are expected to arrive in Bahrain “within weeks” as well as a team of British experts to assist in investigating precisely what materials were used in the tanker attacks, which contradictory accounts say could have been mines or torpedoes, or even an aerial projectile.

UK defence minister and MP Tobias Ellwood told Sky’s Ridge on Sunday: “We have a substantial presence in the Middle East that looks after our interests there. We understand the Middle East, we have a number of allies there as well.”

He added that Britain would beef up its presence in coordination with US forces: “We will be working with the United States to make sure this area is safe and to make sure that we actually deescalate the tensions there but I don’t think Iran should be under any doubt [about] that fact that we will be determined to protect our assets and our interests in the region.”

Among the more interesting quotes from the Sunday Times report suggests the ease with which a direct firefight between US-UK allied forces and Iran’s elite Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) forces – which patrol the vital Strait of Hormuz – could erupt:

A military source said that having marines with machine guns on the decks of warships or merchant ships was likely to see off any Iranian speedboats trying to sneak up on them.

Meanwhile, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo told Fox News Sunday that while the US maintains the view that it is “unmistakable” that Iran is responsible for the attacks, and that it has “lots of data, lots of evidence” — the White House does not actually want war.

“President Trump has done everything he can to avoid war. We don’t want war,” he said. “The United States is going make sure that we take all the actions necessary, diplomatic and otherwise that achieve that outcome,” Pompeo added.

But given the potential for a rapid build-up of western forces in the already crowded Persian Gulf and Strait of Hormuz, and with Iran’s IRGC on a heightened state of alert, it could be too little too late given both sides appear “war ready” and are already blundering precisely toward that dire scenario.

Yemen’s Houthi movement launched a new drone attack targeting the Abha regional airport in southern Saudi Arabia, the group’s Al-Masirah TV said on Monday.

There was no immediate Saudi confirmation of the attack.

The Houthis have launched several strikes targeting Abha since last week, when a missile attack on the airport wounded 26 people. On Saturday, the group said it launched drone attacks on Abha and Jizan, another airport in southern Saudi Arabia.

The US military has released a video it says shows Iran’s military removing an unexploded mine from one of the two oil tankers attacked in the Gulf of Oman, like reported by forces.net.

The footage, as well as still images released by the US military’s Central Command, appeared to show a limpet mine on the Kokuka Courageous.

An Iranian Revolutionary Guard patrol boat then pulled alongside the ship and removed the mine, according to the command’s spokesman Captain Bill Urban.

Captain Urban also said: “The US and the international community stand ready to defend our interests, including the freedom of navigation.

“The United States has no interest in engaging in a new conflict in the Middle East. However, we will defend our interests.”

The US Navy’s USS Bainbridge rushed to assist the vessels, which were damaged 25 miles off the Iranian coast.

Warship USS Mason has also been sent to scene to assist.

US Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo, said the images proved Iran was “responsible” for the attack.

He said the conclusion was reached through intelligence, the weapons used and how “no proxy group operating in the area” can work with “such a high degree of sophistication”.

Mr Pompeo also mentioned there were “recent similar Iranian attacks on shipping”.

This incident comes just a month after four oil tankers were attacked nearby, off the coast of the United Arab Emirates.

The United States also accused Iran who denied being involved.

In the latest attack, Iran has also denied involvement, calling it an “unfounded claim” in the US’ “Iranophobic campaign”.

It also told the UN it condemns the allegation “in the strongest possible terms”.

Meanwhile, Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt has said Britain backs the US’ assessment.

He warned if Iran was proven to be behind the incident, it would be a “deeply unwise escalation which poses a real danger to the prospects of peace and stability in the region”.

Tensions between the US and Iran have been rising since President Donald Trump pulled out of the 2015 nuclear deal.

The US recently sent an aircraft carrier and bombers to the Persian Gulf, to counter what it said was a growing threat from Iran.

The attack on two oil tankers in the Gulf of Oman occurred just forty miles off the coast of a secretive Iranian naval base where submarine-launched anti-ship missiles were tested in February. The Jask base was established in 2008. According to reports it is initially under the control of the Iranian navy, while the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps run other bases in the Persian Gulf, like reported by jpost.com.

The base gave Iran an easy way to threaten the Straits of Hormuz and potentially cut off a fifth of the world’s oil supply. It appears the IRGC set down roots in Jask ask well, after it was expanded. Initially the port is a center for the Islamic Republic of Iran Navy’s 2nd Naval District headquarters.

In 2010 the base was the center of Velayat 89, an annual drill, that was held off the coast of Jask and was coordinated from the base.

However in 2015 The Daily Beast revealed that the base also is central to Iran’s drone program and has Ghadir “midget submarines.” Iran also tested anti-ship missiles near here in 2013. It has historically tested missiles in this area dating back to the 1990s. In a more threatening drill in the fall of 2018 Iran fired a Fateh 110 ballistic missile from an IRGC base in Jask, according to US officials in a statement to Fox News.

In February 2019 the Velayat 97 exercises took place off the coast of Jask with most of the Iranian navy parading next to the Jask base. In February Iran showed footage of a Ghadir class submarine using a “Jask-2” anti-ship missile. Other weapons that Iran has include the Tareq submarine’s electronic torpedo and the Ghadir submarine’s Valfajr torpedo. These were tested in February alongside Qader cruise missiles.

Iran also has a Fateh-class submarine, with another missile called Nasr. It also has a destroyed of the Sahand class. It is a bit confusing because the Fateh 110 missile. Iran has been increasingly experimenting and improving these weapons in the last several years.

Ships owned by companies in Norway and Singapore were reportedly attacked near the Strait of Hormuz. Diplomatic tensions are high in the region following attacks on four vessels last month.

The United States Fifth Fleet responded to attacks on two tankers in the Gulf of Oman on Thursday.

“US naval forces in the region received two separate distress calls at 6:12 a.m. local time and a second one at 7:00 a.m.,” the statement said.

“US Navy ships are in the area and are rendering assistance.”

One of the ships involved was the Front Altair, a Norwegian-owned tanker that was being chartered by Taiwan’s state-owned CPC Corp, the CEO of CPC’s petrochemical division, Wul-Fang, told Reuters.

The ship was carrying 75,000 tonnes of naphtha, a petrochemical feedstock, “when it was suspected of being hit by a torpedo,” he said.

A spokesman for Frontline, the company that owns Front Altair, told Norwegian newspaper VG that the vessel was still on fire and that all 23 crew members were in safety after abandoning ship.

Singapore’s BSM Management said in a statement that its Kokuka Courageous tanker had been damaged in an unspecified “security incident” while it was transporting methanol.

All 21 crew members abandoned ship and one member was slightly injured. The ship was not in danger of sinking, it added.

The reported attacks come amid heightened regional tensions following attacks on four ships off the coast of the United Arab Emirates in May. The United States and Saudi Arabia blamed Iran, which dismissed the accusation.