Iran allegedly receives hundreds of anti-aircraft shoulder-fired missiles from Russia and China

Iran has received hundreds of Chinese and Russian shoulder-fired surface-to-air missiles in recent weeks as it works to rebuild air defenses heavily damaged in its conflict with the United States and ‘Israel’, according to Iranian opposition leaders who spoke to the US-funded Arabic-speaking outlet Alhurra.

The opposition figures, from Kurdish and Ahwazi Arab groups, said the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps acquired three types of man-portable air defense systems (MANPADS).

These were distributed to military sites, urban centers, and border regions across Iran, with some transferred to allied armed groups in Iraq.

Hamid Motashar, head of the Ahwazi Liberal Party, said Iran received about 400 launchers of the Chinese QW-12 and FN-16 systems, along with ammunition and spare parts, in four air shipments from Urumqi in northwestern China via Pakistani airspace.

Motashar also claimed Iranian forces used one of the Chinese systems to shoot down a US-made Lucas drone near Bandar Abbas on July 13.