Israel uses new AI drone swarms to target Iran’s security forces

In surprise attacks on Wednesday night, Israel carried out precision drone strikes against Basij militia checkpoints that had been set up across Tehran in recent days.

The drone attacks marked the beginning of aerial operations targeting forces involved in repression inside Iran.

Informed sources told Iran International that the Israeli military is carrying out such operations through a new method which uses a flying platform acting as a “mother launcher” to deploy drones equipped with artificial intelligence and a large database of targets.

Israel makes extensive use of artificial intelligence and computer guidance to operate the new weapons system, enabling wide-ranging surveillance, identification and precise strikes.

The system is said to be capable of facial recognition, allowing highly precise strikes based on the identification of individuals.

To enable broader use of the method, Israel, in cooperation with the United States, established air superiority over Iranian skies in the early phase of the military campaign against Iran which began on Feb 28. by suppressing Iranian air defenses, paving the way for the deployment of the system.

Most reconnaissance and surveillance operations in Iran are currently carried out using Israeli Hermes and Heron drones, as well as US MQ-9 Reaper drones.

Features of 'mother ship'

Israel’s offensive drone operations under the “mother ship” or “mother launcher” concept have four main characteristics:

• The ability to deploy large numbers of attack drones, including micro-drones
• The ability to conduct network-centric or data-driven attacks supported by artificial intelligence
• Operations based on an AI-driven target database capable of predictive threat analysis and identifying behavioral patterns of human targets on the ground
• An element of surprise due to high-altitude flight and the relatively low noise of the aircraft

A notable feature of the current aerial campaign in Iran is Israel’s move toward manned–unmanned teaming (MUM-T).

Under this approach, drones used in offensive operations in Iran are launched from three main platforms.

Transport aircraft such as the C-130 are used as drone carriers capable of releasing large numbers of attack drones at high altitude, allowing them to travel hundreds of kilometers beyond the range they could cover if launched from the ground.

Large UAVs such as the Heron, capable of flying at altitudes of about 45,000 feet, may also serve as airborne carriers capable of deploying micro-drones against repression forces and other military targets.

Israeli fighter jets including the F-15I Ra’am and F-16I Sufa can also carry smaller drones in pods or on wing pylons and release them at high altitude to act as decoys, electronic warfare disruptors or reconnaissance observers.

“The situation with Iran is moving along very rapidly. It's doing very well,” US President Donald Trump said on Thursday while speaking at a Women’s History Month event.

“Our military is unsurpassed. Has never been anything like it. Nobody's ever seen anything like it. And we're doing what has to be done,” Trump said.

He said action against Iran should have been taken earlier.

“It should have been done during a 47-year period. It could have been done by a lot of different people. They chose not to do it,” he said.

“They really are a nation of terror and hate, and they're paying a big price right now,” he added.

Israel has relied on target information sent by ordinary Iranians for some of its strikes inside Iran during the current war, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing a senior Israeli security official.

The official said Iranians on the ground transmit information about targets to Israel through Israeli social media accounts in Persian.

According to the official, the information sent by Iranians is first verified and vetted by Israel, and if it is found to be accurate, Israel acts on it.

The official said this was the case on Wednesday night when an Israeli Hermes unmanned aerial vehicle struck Basij checkpoints in Tehran, the report said.

Exiled Iranian prince Reza Pahlavi said the first statement attributed to Iran’s new supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei shows the Islamic Republic is “incapable of change.”

“Whether it was Mojtaba Khamenei or his IRGC handlers, the first statement from the current regime’s new leader confirms what the Iranian people have known all along: the Islamic Republic is incapable of change,” Pahlavi wrote on X.

“Terror and repression are in its DNA. This latest statement promises only to continue the same insatiable bloodlust and chaos that has held our nation and the world hostage for decades,” he added.

Pahlavi said the message threatened Iran’s Arab neighbors and signaled continued support for regional proxy groups.

“By explicitly threatening our Arab neighbors with continued military strikes and doubling down on the regime’s proxy terror networks, the new Ayatollah sounds just like the old Ayatollah,” he said.

“We cannot appease or negotiate with a barbaric dictatorship that views the occupation of our nation and the destruction of its neighbors as a ‘divine’ mandate.”

Pahlavi called for international support for efforts to end the Islamic Republic.

“It’s long past time to turn the page. Don’t throw this regime a lifeline. The only resolution to five decades of aggression is to end this regime once and for all,” he said.

“The Iran National Soccer Team is welcome to The World Cup, but I really don’t believe it is appropriate that they be there, for their own life and safety,” Trump wrote on social media.

It was unclear whether he was referring to their safety traveling to the United States or during the tournament itself. Some social media users interpreted the remark as a threat and expressed concern.

Trump’s comments came a day after FIFA President Gianni Infantino said he had discussed Iran’s participation with him and had received assurances about the team’s entry into the tournament, which will be co-hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico from June 11 to July 19.

Infantino, who maintains a close relationship with Trump, said the president had reiterated the Iranian team was “of course, welcome” to compete in the United States. Trump had previously said he did not care whether Iran participated.

Iran were drawn in Group G alongside Belgium, Egypt and New Zealand and were scheduled to open against New Zealand in Inglewood, California., on June 15, face Belgium on June 21 and conclude the group stage against Egypt in Seattle on June 26.

But Iran’s sports minister, Ahmad Donyamali, said Wednesday that Team Melli would not take part in the tournament amid the war.

“Considering that this corrupt regime has assassinated our leader, under no circumstances can we participate in the World Cup,” he said on state television.

Iran had selected Tucson’s Kino Sports Complex as its base camp after preparations stretching back more than 18 months, leaving those plans—and related economic activity in Arizona—uncertain following the withdrawal.

FIFA regulations say any team that withdraws no later than 30 days before its first match faces a fine of at least 250,000 Swiss francs ($320,800), while additional sanctions could include expulsion from future competitions or replacement by another national team.