An Iraniangeneral said Wednesday that a purported Israeli drone shot down near a nuclearfacility in the Islamic Republic flew in from a northern country that once waspart of the Soviet Union.

Thesemi-official Fars news agency, close to the Revolutionary Guard, quoted Gen.Masoud Jazayeri making the allegation. It reported that Jazayeri, the deputychief of staff in Iran’s armed forces, said the country must make “compensatoryactions” or else be publicly named.

There arethree former Soviet republics immediately north of Iran: Armenia, Azerbaijanand Turkmenistan. Iran in the past had criticized Azerbaijan for its close tieswith Israel and the country does operate drones like the one Iran said it shotdown.

On Sunday,Iran’s powerful Revolutionary Guard said it shot down the purported Israelidrone near the country’s uranium enrichment facility in Natanz, some 240kilometres south of the capital, Tehran. State television aired footage of thepurported drone Monday and identified it as a Hermes 450 drone, which ismanufactured in Israel.

Israeliofficials have not commented on the incident.

(The Associated Press)

Bakudaily.Az