Report: Iran launches massive missiles during a naval drill near Strait of Hormuz

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) – Iran launched massive missiles in the Sea of Oman and near the strategic Strait of Hormuz during the second day of a naval drill, state TV reported Friday.

The report said the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard launched the missiles from the depth of Iran’s mainland, hitting targets in the Oman Sea and neighboring area near Strait of Hormuz in a drill that began on Thursday.

It identified the missiles as cruise Qadr-110, Qadr-380 and Ghadir that have a range of up to 2,000 kilometers (1,250 miles.) It said the Guard also launch a ballistic missile identified as 303, without elaborating.

TV footage showed the missiles’ launch and hitting their targets.

The drill is the second one following the Israel-Iran war in June that killed nearly 1,100 people in Iran, including military commanders and nuclear scientists. Missile attacks by Iran killed 28 in Israel.

Since the end of the war, Iran has increasingly insisted that it is ready to counter any future Israeli attack. Iran launched its first naval drill in the area in August.

Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard is mainly in charge of operations in the Persian Gulf and its narrow mouth, the Strait of Hormuz. The national navy is in charge of Sea of Oman and beyond.

Iran long has threatened to close off the Strait of Hormuz, through which 20% of all global oil traded passes. The U.S. Navy has long patrolled the Mideast through its Bahrain-based 5th Fleet to keep the waterways open.