Iranian instructors killed in Ukraine, Israeli media says
Drone training at an unknown location in Iran (Photo:Iranian Army/WANA (West Asia News Agency)/Handout via REUTERS)
Ten Iranian instructors, who were training Russian troops in Moscow-occupied Ukrainian territory, were killed last week by Ukrainian strikes, Israeli newspaper The Jerusalem Post reported on Oct. 21, citing an unnamed Ukrainian official.
Oleksiy Arestovich, an adviser to the President's Office, said on Oct. 20 that the Armed Forces of Ukraine delivered two strikes against Iranian military advisers in Ukrainian territory.
On Oct. 21, Iranian Foreign Ministry urged its citizens in Ukraine to leave the country immediately.
The ministry continues to claim that they have nothing to do with the supply of Shahed-136 kamikaze drones to Russia, adding that Tehran is ready for negotiations with Ukraine in order to “refute the accusations.”
Earlier, White House spokesman John Kirby said that the United States has evidence that the Iranian instructors are present in Russia-occupied Crimea. According to Washington, they supervise Russian drone strikes against Ukrainian infrastructure and civilian population.
The New York Times previously reported that instructors from the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps arrived in occupied Crimea to assist Russian drone operators.
Russia has stepped up its air and drone strikes against Ukraine’s energy infrastructure since Oct. 10, making heavy use of Iranian Shahed-136 kamikaze drones.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said Kyiv is considering severing diplomatic ties with Iran.
According to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Russia has procured 2,400 Shahed kamikaze drones from Iran.
U.S. media reports later suggested that Iran had also agreed to transfer short-range ground-to-ground ballistic missiles to Russia.
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