The U.S. Department of Defense confirmed Thursday that the USS John Paul Jones engaged and destroyed an Iranian Shahed-129 surveillance drone that approached within 1,500 yards of the guided-missile destroyer while it was conducting operations in the central Persian Gulf.
Pentagon spokesperson Brig. Gen. Marcus Cole told reporters the drone ignored repeated radio warnings and closed at a speed and trajectory the ship's commander deemed hostile. The destroyer employed its Close-In Weapon System to bring the aircraft down. No U.S. personnel were injured.
"This was a defensive action taken to protect the vessel and its crew," Cole said. "The drone's flight profile matched a pattern of harassing behavior we have seen from IRGC-affiliated units over the past several weeks."
Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps issued a statement via state media denying the drone belonged to Iranian forces and claiming the U.S. had engaged "a commercial reconnaissance asset operating lawfully in international airspace." The statement characterized the shoot-down as "an act of war" and warned of "consequences at a time and place of Tehran's choosing."
The incident represents the first confirmed kinetic engagement between U.S. and Iranian forces since the current escalation began. It follows a series of maritime encounters in the Strait of Hormuz and Gulf of Oman that had, until now, remained below the threshold of open hostilities.
Defense Secretary Katherine Webb is scheduled to brief congressional leadership at 14:00 EST. Aides said the briefing would cover rules of engagement, force protection measures, and contingency planning for further Iranian retaliation.