Iraq says it shot down unmanned US plane

Iraq has shot down an unmanned US aircraft that flew over from Kuwait, the official Iraqi News Agency said today.

If confirmed, it would be the second time in a month that Iraqi defences have brought down one of the American reconnaissance drones.

“The spy plane that breached the sanctity of Iraq’s international airspace is used by the American enemy to spy on our civilian military installations,” an unnamed spokesman for Iraq’s air defence command was quoted as saying.

He identified the aircraft as a Predator, but the report did not say where or when it was downed.

After Iraq shot down a Predator on December 23, US officials called it a “lucky shot” and did not treat it as a significant hostile act.

American and British war planes have been patrolling the skies of southern and northern “no-fly zones” in Iraq since 1991, keeping Iraqi aircraft from flying in those areas.