Iran claims successful submarine launch of cruise missile

Iran state media reported Sunday that the country had successfully tested a cruise missile during naval exercises by the Strait of Hormuz, according to Reuters.

“On the third day of the … exercises, a Ghadir-class Iranian navy submarine successfully launched a cruise missile,” official news agency IRNA reportedly said.

{mossecondads}IRNA also reportedly quoted a military statement saying that the country’s other submarines have the same capabilities.

Additionally, the head of the Iran’s Revolutionary Guard’s aerospace division told Tasnim news agency that Iran was aware of “enemy efforts” to “sabotage” its missile programs, according to Reuters.

“They were trying to sabotage some parts, to cause the missiles to explode in the air,” Hajizadeh said. “But so far, they have failed … because we anticipated (the sabotage plans) and made reinforcements.”

The claims come amid high tensions between the U.S. and Iran, Reuters noted.

President Trump last year pulled the U.S. out of the Obama-era Iran nuclear deal, which lifted sanctions on the country in exchange for restrictions on its nuclear program. Since then, the U.S. has hit Iran with sanctions that had been lifted as part of that deal, increasing tensions between the two nations.