Tehran, July 19 -- Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps says it has intercepted and destroyed a US MQ-9 drone in Ahvaz, a city in the Khuzestan region that borders Iraq, state-run Press TV reported.

An MQ-9 is a "large, remotely piloted unmanned aerial vehicle designed primarily for intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance, and air strikes," according to a description by the US Air Force.

The development comes amid a sharp escalation in regional hostilities, with US Central Command (CENTCOM) carrying out a series of military operations targeting Iranian assets. The strikes mark an "eighth consecutive night" of kinetic actions against Tehran-backed facilities in the region.

According to an official statement released on X, the ope...