Iranian Unmanned Bomber

Iran Defense Ministry photo via AP and VOA

Iran has announced the development of a long-range unmanned aircraft that could be used as a bomber or for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance-gathering. Called the  Karrar, which means  “destroyer” or “striker,” can carry up to four cruise missiles and has a range of up to 620 miles — not enough to reach Israel, according to Iranian government media quoted by the New York Times.

The unveiling of this drone comes a day after Iran began fueling its first nuclear power plant. The government claims it will only use nuclear power for peaceful means but Israel is not convinced and has not ruled out an attack to disable Iran’s nuclear ambitions.

Last Friday, Iran tested its latest surface-to-surface missile, the Qiam. In July,  Iran’s Army Research Center  announced the Islamic Republic intends to build new radar-evading drones that can be operated by its submarines. In 2009, Iran’s Air Force commander said that Iran had successfully tested its two home-made drones of ‘Ra’d’ (Thunder) and ‘Nazir’ (Harbinger) and mass production of the drones would begin soon, China’s Xinhua news agency reports.

Iran has been producing its own lightweight surveillance unmanned aircraft since the 1980s, the Associated Press Reports. For more photos of the Karrar from the AP, click here.