U.S.Military Concerned About Captured Drone. Iran's Revolutionary Guards Prepare For War

Iran capture of stealth drone 'a concern'

US military officials said they are concerned that Iran may have an opportunity to acquire information about the classified surveillance drone programme after one of the stealthy aircraft crashed in Iran while patrolling in western Afghanistan. 

The RQ-170 – known as the Sentinel – has been used in Afghanistan, particularly along the border, for several years. The U.S. Air Force has just "a handful" of them, said defence analyst Loren Thompson, with the Virginia-based Lexington Institute.

"I think we're always concerned when there's an aircraft, whether it's manned or unmanned, that we lose, particularly in a place where we're not able to get to it," Navy Capt. John Kirby, a Pentagon spokesman, told reporters on Monday.
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Iran's Revolutionary Guards prepare for war

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards have been put on a war footing amid increasing signs that the West is taking direct action to cripple Iran’s nuclear programme.

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran’s spiritual leader, issued a directive to the heads of all the country’s military, intelligence and security organisations to take all necessary measures to protect the regime Photo: AP








By Con Coughlin

8:45PM GMT 05 Dec 2011

An order from Gen Mohammed Ali Jaafari, the commander of the guards, raised the operational readiness status of the country’s forces, initiating preparations for potential external strikes and covert attacks.

Western intelligence officials said the Islamic Republic had initiated plans to disperse long-range missiles, high explosives, artillery and guards units to key defensive positions.

The order was given in response to the mounting international pressure over Iran’s nuclear programme. Preparation for a confrontation has gathered pace following last month’s report by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in Vienna that produced evidence that Iran was actively working to produce nuclear weapons.

The Iranian leadership fears the country is being subjected to a carefully co-ordinated attack by Western intelligence and security agencies to destroy key elements of its nuclear infrastructure.

Recent explosions have added to the growing sense of paranoia within Iran, with the regime fearing it will be the target of a surprise military strike by Israel or the US.
read more here  http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/iran/8936797/Irans-Revolutionary-Guards-prepare-for-war.html