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U.S. Downs Iran Drone Over Iraq

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The New York Times

Published: March 17, 2009

BAGHDAD - The American military confirmed Monday that it shot down an Iranian remotely piloted aircraft over Iraqi territory, in what is thought to be the first incident of its type during the war.

"Coalition aircraft shot down an Iranian Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Feb. 25, 2009, approximately 60 miles northeast of Baghdad," said Col. James Hutton, spokesman for the U.S. military commander in Iraq.

Although that location would put the drone relatively close to the Iran-Iraq border, Hutton denied speculation that it had simply strayed across the border accidentally.

"This is not true," he said. "It was in Iraqi airspace and tracked one hour and 10 minutes before it was engaged." Hutton added that coalition jet fighters shot it down without causing any collateral damage.

The U.S. military has long accused Iran of meddling in Iraqi affairs, arming militants and fueling sectarian strife. In recent months, however, the Iranians have refrained from overtly supplying weapons to Iraqi factions, partly as a show of cooperation with a largely friendly Iraqi government.

Maj. Gen. Mohammed Askari, the defense ministry spokesman, said the Americans had not informed Iraqi officials in advance of their decision to shoot down the Iranian drone. He noted that under the terms of the Status of Forces Agreement between the United States and Iraq, protection of Iraqi airspace remains an American responsibility for the next three years.

The Iranian drone was 80 miles inside Iraqi territory without permission, "so its presence was illegal," Askari said.

The drone may well have been more interested in Iranian dissidents in Iraq than in American or Iraqi military operations. The location where it was shot down is not far from Camp Ashraf, where 3,500 followers of the Iranian dissident Peoples Mujahideen of Iran Organization are based.

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