Rear Admiral Mahmoud Mousavi, the spokesman for the joint drills codenamed Zolfaqar-1400, said troops serving in the Army’s infantry and armored units, mechanized regiments, air defense units, naval units, and Air Force have taken part in the main stage of the exercise.

He said participating tactical and coastal units in the war game have successfully carried out various reconnaissance, surveillance, and combat exercises, employing different types of electronic warfare equipment and drones such as the homegrown Ababil-3, Yasir, Sadeq, Mohajer-4, and Simorgh unmanned aerial vehicles, besides P3F, RF4, and Boeing 707 aircraft.

The senior military figure highlighted that marine and commando units of the Iranian Army and its Navy carried out airborne, heliborne, and amphibious exercises, launched surprise attacks, and stroke predetermined mock enemy targets.

“The units used a wide variety of military equipment and weapons, including speedboats, fast attack craft, underwater propulsion vehicles, and rocket launchers,” Mousavi said.

He highlighted that the Iranian marines and commandos, regardless of tough topographical features of the area and intense attacks by mock enemy forces, utilized effective combat and reconnaissance strategies to prevent the latter from conducting surveillance activities and making on-ground progress.

He said Iranian naval forces employed domestically-developed Azarakhsh, Shahab and Ra’d speedboats, which were equipped with rocket launchers, to destroy the naval units of the mock enemy.

Other missions carried out during the war game included naval mines planting, coastal defense by means of artillery units, and heliborne operations, the admiral added.

Mousavi further hailed the sustainability of communications during the ongoing military drills, stating that during the exercise, the Islamic Republic of Iran Air Defense Force monitors the country’s airspace and that of the exercise zone, while air defense units confront mock enemy targets. Elite fighter pilots and unmanned aerial vehicles of the Iranian Army also conduct air patrol operations.

He pointed out that all stages of Zolfaqar-1400 war game will be evaluated by experts of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Khatam-al Anbiya Central Command, and the Islamic Republic of Iran Army.

Meanwhile Commander of the Khatam-al Anbiya Central Headquarters said that enemies should refrain from testing the strength of the Army and IRGC.

Major General Gholam Ali Rashid made the remarks among the army commanders in the area of the ‘Zolfaghar 1400’ military exercise.

Referring to the capabilities and combat readiness of the Army of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Gen. Rashid said, “The Iranian Army and Armed Forces are always ready for a strategic, operational and tactical confrontation with the aim of maintaining the security stability and territorial integrity of Iran against the coalition of enemies (Specifically the U.S.-Zionist coalition).”

Iran Armed Forces, including IRGC and Army forces, will respond decisively to any threats by any arrogant and aggressor power at any level and from the origin of any country, he stressed.

Stating that the Armed Forces of the country have got familiar with the components of power and the ways how to use them during the Iran-Iraq war, he warned enemies to refrain from testing the strength of the will and power of the Army and IRGC.

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The drill, codenamed Zolfaqar-1400, covers an area of over one million square kilometers southeast of Iran, stretching from the eastern parts of the strategic Strait of Hormuz to the northern tip of the Indian Ocean and parts of the Red Sea, according to Tasnim.

Troops serving in the Army’s infantry, armored units, mechanized regiments, Navy, Air Force, and Air Defense have taken part in the main stage of the exercise.

Rear Admiral Mahmoud Mousavi, the spokesman for the drill, said the tactical and coastal units in the war game have employed various electronic warfare equipment and drones, including different homegrown drones such as Ababil-3, Yasir, Sadeq, Mohajer-4 and Simorgh, besides P3F, RF4, and Boeing 707 aircraft.

Mousavi hailed the sustainability of communications during the drill. He said air defense units confront mock enemy targets.

The spokesman also said the exercise carries a message for the regional countries as a preparation for establishment of peace and friendship on the basis of intra-regional capacities.

History has proven that extra-regional actors favor belligerence and insecurity in the region, Tasnim quoted Mousavi as saying.

In comments at a press conference on Saturday, Deputy Army Chief for Coordination Affairs Rear Admiral Habibollah Sayyari said the drill is aimed at raising the combat and defense capabilities of the Army units in protecting the country’s territorial integrity.

Sayyari also noted that the troops will be demonstrating the Islamic Republic’s power in remote waters during the war game, warning the enemies that any act of aggression against Iran will draw a crushing response from the Army.

The Iranian Armed Forces stage routine military exercises throughout the year.

Iranian military experts and technicians have in recent years made great strides in developing and manufacturing a broad range of equipment, making the armed forces self-sufficient.

Officials have repeatedly underscored that Iran will not hesitate to build up its defense capabilities, emphasizing such abilities are entirely meant for the purpose of defense and will be never subject to negotiations.

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The United States was trying to redirect the route of the tanker to an unspecified place and transfer its oil to another tanker.

Servicemen from the IRGC Navy took the control of the oil tanker by boarding it through helicopter and redirected it toward the Iranian territorial waters.

U.S. forces, using helicopters and warships, tried hard to redirect the ship but they failed as they faced bravery demonstrated by the IRGC personnel.

In another attempt, U.S. forces tried to change the route of the ship by blocking its path through warships but they failed again.

The tanker is now in the Iranian waters in the Sea of Oman.

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The National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) had awarded the project for the study of Oman Sea gas hydrate resources to RIPI back in the Iranian calendar year 1397 (started in March 2018).

RIPI was supposed to work on the project in collaboration with NIOC’s Exploration Department in an executive four-year program.

The mentioned project has been defined in 11 different sections, in two of which the institute is going to cooperate with the National Institute for Oceanography and Atmospheric Science.

Speaking on the sidelines of the signing ceremony, IRIP Head Jafar Tofiqi underlined the significance of the cooperation between the two institutes and said: “This cooperation is very valuable because it is for a major national project in terms of technical knowledge and I am optimistic that with the cooperation of the two research institutes we can implement this project well.”

“Considering the energy capacities of the country on land and sea, fortunately, exploration projects are among the important programs of the Oil Ministry,” Tofiqi said, adding: “This project is of special importance for the NIOC exploration Department as the employer, so it is necessary to use the knowledge and executive capacities of both parties to be able to complete the project successfully.”

Field studies, research for boosting the recovery factor of oil and gas reservoirs, drilling-related research projects, and several other exploration projects are among the projects that are being pursued and carried out by the RIPI, the official said.

RIPI was initially established under the title of the “Iran Petroleum Industry Research Development Office” in 1959. Its primary aim was to carry out research on the application of petroleum materials.

The main strategy of PIRI is creating value-added via the development and indigenization of new technologies used in the oil industry.

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The source added that 44 sailors were transferred to Iran’s port city of Jask in the southern province of Hormozgan as a result of the rescue operation.

Following the attack, Iran dispatched an advanced Search and Rescue (SAR) vessel, Naji (rescuer) 10, to the Sea of Oman for relief and rescue operations.

Crude oil futures jumped on Thursday following reports of explosions in the Sea of Oman.

Benchmark Brent crude oil rises 4% in trading to over $62 a barrel after the incident, Bloomberg reported.

Reuters identified the tankers as the Marshal Islands-flagged Front Altair and the Panama-flagged Kokuka Courageous.

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In comments on Thursday, Rear Admiral Hossein Khanzadi said the upcoming naval drill, codenamed Velayat-97, will be held in an area of 2 million square kilometers in the Iranian southern waters, from the Strait of Hormuz to the southeastern coasts of Makran, the Sea of Oman and the northern parts of the Indian Ocean, down to the 10-degrees latitude.

According to the commander, the drill will be held in four separate phases, including naval parades, simulation of a real naval war, maritime and land offense to practice recapturing the territories occupied by the enemy, and the display of the Navy’s power by launching various types of missiles and torpedoes.

He also noted that the Navy will for the first time fly patrol, reconnaissance and bomber drones during the war game.

Rear Admiral Khanzadi said the submarines will also launch missiles in the exercise for the first time, noting that anti-submarine helicopters will also land on and take off from the Sahand destroyer’s deck.

The war game will include electronic warfare tactics and electronic data transmission from the coast, he added.

Iran’s Armed Forces hold routine military exercises throughout the year.

Iranian officials have repeatedly underscored that the country will not hesitate to strengthen its military capabilities, including its missile power, which are entirely meant for defense, and that Iran’s defense capabilities will be never subject to negotiations.

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 Park Rangers have spotted a black stork, from a rare bird species, in Konarak, southeastern Sistan and Baluchestan province.

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