Iranian drones that were used in an attack on a Zodiac Maritime-operated MR tanker in 2021, are now being deployed in Ukraine, the US has warned.
The US Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) made the claims in a detailed schematic analysis released Tuesday, with charts and pictures of debris documenting Russian use of unmanned aerial vehicles.
The report is said to provide a visual comparison of UAVs used by Russian forces in Ukraine and Iranian UAVs used to attack US and partner interests in the Middle East.
In July 2021, a drone is said to have hit the 49,992-dwt Mercer Street (built 2013) off the coast of Oman killing two people — a UK national security guard and the ship's unnamed Romanian captain.
US Central Command — the US military's arm responsible for the Middle East — said its experts were able to recover pieces of the drone, concluding it was built in Iran.
“Photos of UAV debris and components from Ukraine are consistent with systems showcased at military expos and other venues in the Middle East. This analysis confirms Russia’s use of various Iranian lethal UAVs in its war in Ukraine,” the intelligence agency said.
The DIA said the Iranian-origin Shahed-136, renamed Geran-2 by the Russians, has a distinctive shape, with a delta-wing body and vertical stabilisers extending above and below the body, as displayed in Iranian press and military expos.
“Iran used Shahed-136 UAVs in the 2021 attack against the merchant vessel Mercer Street and has also transferred this system to the Huthis in Yemen. The Huthis have not used this system in an attack to date, but have displayed it publicly,” the DIA said.
“The images circulating in the open press of UAVs in Ukraine clearly show the features of the Shahed-136’s delta-wing body and vertical stabilisers.”
However, the DIA gave no indication that would suggest the drones were about to be used against commercial shipping.
Commercial shipping has largely escaped being targeted by Russian forces in their attack on Ukraine, however, there has been the occasional exception.
Bangladesh Shipping Corp (BSC) saw its 38,894-dwt Banglar Samriddhi (built 2018) hit by a rocket off the port of Olvia at the start of March 2022, killing a crew member.
