REUTERS/Lisi NiesnerIranian flag flies in front of the UN office building, housing IAEA headquarters, amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, in Vienna, Austria, May 24, 2021. REUTERS/Lisi NiesnerIran was holding air defence exercises on Saturday, state media reported, as the country braces for more friction with arch-enemy Israel and the United States under incoming U.S. president Donald Trump. The war games take place as Iranian leaders face the risk that Trump could empower Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to attack Iran's nuclear sites, while further tightening U.S. sanctions on its oil industry through his "maximum pressure" policy. "In these exercises,...defence systems will practice the fight against air, missile and electronic warfare threats in real battlefield conditions... to protect the country's skies and sensitive and vital areas," Iranian state television said. Iran has recently suffered setbacks in Lebanon after Israeli attacks against Iranian-backed Hezbollah and the toppling of Tehran's ally President Bashar Al-Assad in Syria last month.

Source: bd News24 January 12, 2025 01:05 UTC