Middle East

Headline USA -   Bloomberg reported on Thursday that during the US-Israeli bombing campaign against Iran that began on February 28, Iranian forces destroyed more than two dozen US MQ-9 Reaper drones, or nearly $1 billion worth of the unmanned aircraft. The number represents about 20% of the Pentagon’s MQ-9 inventory. The drones have been used for nearly two decades in strikes as part of the US “War on Terror,” which continues today in Somalia, Yemen, and now Nigeria, but when used against an enemy with air defenses, the MQ-9 is extremely vulnerable.