The Proud of Islamic Ummah and Oppresed People Islamic Revolution Guards Corps tests new indigenous battle gear

A senior Iranian commander says the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) has tested its latest military equipment in the recent exercises codenamed Shohaday-e Vahdat (Martyrs of Unity) in eastern Iran.

The drills were held in line with the IRGC efforts to promote domestically-developed military hardware and enhance preparedness of the forces for potential battles in face of enemy threats, Deputy Commander of IRGC Ground Forces Brigadier General Abdollah Araqi said on Tuesday.

He added that the IRGC force executed innovative fighting tactics in accordance with the Ground Forces battlefield doctrine in the Shohaday-e Vahdat military exercises.

The commander lauded the “successful” maneuvers and noted that the observance of principles of asymmetric warfare and use of the latest domestically-built military hardware were among the main features of the drills.

During separate operations, the IRGC Ground Forces succeeded in scoring direct hits against pre-determined targets, he pointed out.

The IRGC Ground Forces successfully concluded their military Shohaday-e Vahdat drills in eastern Iran on Monday.

Among major objectives of the maneuvers were bolstering security along Iran’s eastern border areas, promoting the defense and combat capabilities of the IRGC’s Ground Forces as well as transferring to young officers the experiences gained during the eight-year war imposed by Iraq on Iran.

The first phase of the exercises started in the vicinity of Khaf city in Khorasan Razavi Province on Saturday, days after Iranian naval forces staged the 10-day massive Velayat 90 exercise near the strategic Strait of Hormuz in the Persian Gulf.

The Velayat 90 naval drill, launched on December 24, 2011, included four stages, namely the preparedness, the expansion of forces, the tactical, and the power phase, which were carried out successfully with the surface and subsurface vessel units and aviation units penetrating to the targeted depths.

Iran maintains that the maneuvers are defensive in nature and intend to convey a message of peace and friendship to regional countries. It has also extended a public invitation to regional states to conduct joint naval drills with Iranian forces.