IRGC launches second phase of naval drill with missile and drone fire
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards began the second phase of a naval drill with volleys of ballistic and cruise missiles aimed at targets in the Oman Sea, state media reported on Friday.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards began the second phase of a naval drill with volleys of ballistic and cruise missiles aimed at targets in the Oman Sea, state media reported on Friday.
Qadr 110, Qadr 380 and Qadir cruise missiles, along with the 303 ballistic missile, were fired from locations inside Iran and struck preselected targets at sea, according to the state media. Drone units also carried out attacks on simulated enemy bases, and naval air defense systems practiced responses to aerial threats against fast boats and coastal positions.
The exercise is taking place in the Persian Gulf, the Strait of Hormuz and around Iran’s southern islands, waters where Iranian officials have at times said traffic could be restricted during periods of tension.
The IRGC Navy has said the drill is named after Mohammad Nazeri, a commander and founder of the force’s special operations unit who was killed in 2016. Earlier this week, the navy announced the exercise would run for two days and extend across the Persian Gulf, the Strait of Hormuz, the Oman Sea and nearby islands.
Officials say the drill includes testing combat systems, electronic warfare defenses and operations in simulated wartime conditions.
The naval drill follows Sahand 2025, a five day counter terrorism exercise led by IRGC Ground Forces in East Azarbaijan province under the Shanghai Cooperation Organization framework. That drill was designed with support from Iran’s foreign ministry and the SCO’s Regional Anti Terrorist Structure and focuses on what the bloc calls terrorism, separatism and extremism.
“Still, I prefer to leave my artistic work for a day when the Islamic Republic no longer exists in my country,” she said.
Embarking on a farewell tour, she framed her decision within the wider social shifts unfolding in Iran, particularly the growing rejection of the compulsory hijab and the generational frustration she believes now defines the country.
“We are seeing our youth, especially women, fighting for their most basic rights,” she said, describing a society confronting economic strain, political repression and demands for ordinary freedoms.
Defiance of compulsory veiling is now widespread in Iran as women and girls appear in public without headscarves in one of the most visible social shifts since Mahsa Amini’s death in 2022.
The pressures facing a new generation, Googoosh said, have accelerated her own sense of responsibility as an artist.
“People in my country are struggling to give their families an ordinary life. They struggle for clean water, clean air, and land where they can live. Our young people grew old without ever enjoying their youth. Our people must end this painful cycle and gain the freedoms every human being deserves.”
Iran’s rulers have long relied on strict hijab enforcement by police and Basij forces. The current situation comes amid persistent power cuts, water shortages and a weakened economy, all of which risk fueling further anger.
A life shaped by stardom and silence
Born Faegheh Atashin, she entered the spotlight as a child performer and quickly became one of pre-revolution Iran’s most recognizable cultural figures. Her look, voice and stage presence shaped an entire era of Iranian pop culture.
After the 1979 revolution, she remained in Iran and spent two decades barred from performing under the new theocracy, facing surveillance, harassment and a period of imprisonment. When authorities finally allowed her to leave in 2000, she resumed her career abroad, launching a revival that connected her with Iranians who had long been cut off from her music.
“After the revolution, the pressure on me grew,” Googoosh said. “Since Farsi is my mother tongue and I grew up in Iran, I could not adjust to living outside my country. I did not want that life. I hoped I could somehow continue performing for my own people, inside my own country.”
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