Iranians begin 5-day, nationwide air defense drill

The Iranian military began a five-day nationwide military drill dubbed "Defenders of the Sky" on Tuesday, state-run IRNA reported.

"Army Defense Forces, Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), police and Basij have joined the military exercise," drill spokesman Brig.-Gen. Hamid Arjangi told IRNA.

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"The military maneuver is staged across the country unlike last year's," he said.

"Aircrafts of the enemy dubbed 'Orange Forces' were identified and intercepted by our radar systems and then the order to confront the enemy was given."

Low-, mid- and high-altitude missiles were being used in the drill, he added.


"Boosting the self-confidence and self-esteem of Iranian air defense forces is one of the goals of the operations," he said, adding, "new, modernized air defense systems, long-range missile as well as radar systems built indigenously over last year, are being used in the drill."

The first phase of the "Defenders of the Sky" exercise will wrap up on Wednesday, when the second stage will begin.