Iran-Backed Iraqi Fighters Shoot Down U.S. MQ‑9 Reaper | Iran–Israel–U.S. War
The incident happened near the Syrian border, where the Reaper was flying a long‑endurance surveillance mission to track missile and rocket units tied to Tehran’s network of militias. According to the group, a lookout team spotted the UAV at medium altitude and guided a MANPADS operator into position before firing a heat‑seeking missile.
Grainy video released on militia channels shows a launch flare, a bright streak climbing into the night sky and then a distant fireball tumbling toward the desert. Follow‑up clips filmed by locals show wreckage scattered over scrubland: shattered wings, a smashed sensor turret and twisted sections of the drone’s fuselage.
