Iran said on Saturday it has started mass producing and using a stealth drone with a range of 700 kilometres (420 miles) that it claims is undetectable to radars. "We have built a drone with a more than 700-kilometre range which can collect information and shoot films," the head of the elite Revolutionary Guards, General Yahya Rahim Safavi, told Iran's Arabic-language satellite news channel Al-Alam.

"The material and the shape of this drone make it undetectable for radars, so it can not be targeted," he added.

"The drone has passed its experimental phase and it is being mass produced, and we are currently using it in our operations," Rahim Safavi, said without giving more details.

His announcement comes a few days after troops under his command successfully tested a land-to-sea missile with a range of about 350 kilometres (210 miles) and a new Russian-made air defence missile system.

Iranian leaders have repeatedly said the Islamic republic's armed forces are ready for any eventuality in the current standoff with the West over its nuclear programme.

Although the United States has said it wants the standoff resolved through diplomacy, Washington has never ruled out military action to thwart Iran's atomic drive.

The United States accuses Iran of seeking a nuclear weapon. Tehran vehemently denies the charges, insisting its atomic programme is peaceful in nature.

earlier related report
Iran warns 'suicide drones' can hit US navy
Tehran (AFP) Feb 11 - Iran has built "suicide" drones capable of attacking US naval ships and forcing them to leave Gulf waters, the semi-official news agency Mehr quoted a Revolutionary Guards commander as saying Sunday.

"We have built birds without passengers (drones) that can carry out suicide operations on the US Navy, at any depth if necessary, to make them leave the region in disgrace," said Ali Shoushtari, deputy commander of the Guards' land forces.

Warning about a "defeat for the enemy", Shoushtari said: "Americans know that if they confront the Islamic system, they wil not be secure in the region or at home."

Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Thursday vowed to hit back at US interests worldwide if it attacked the Islamic republic to thwart its nuclear programme.

In response, the White House said it has no plans to invade Iran, and downplayed the significance of reinforcing the US military presence in the Gulf region.

Iranian leaders have repeatedly said the country's armed forces are ready for any eventuality in the current standoff with the West over its nuclear activities.

The United States accuses Iran of seeking a nuclear weapon. Tehran vehemently denies the charges, insisting its atomic programme is peaceful in nature.

Source: Agence France-Presse
http://www.spacewar.com/reports/Iran_Claims_New_Stealth_Drone_That_Can_Attack_US_Gulf_Fleet_999.html