Iran's state media reported today that the forces stormed and "liberated" a replica of the mosque in the exercise. They say that 120 brigades from the Basij, the paramilitary unit of the Guard, participated in Friday's exercise outside the holy city of Qom in central Iran.
The symbolic operations were backed up by Guard helicopters, drones and Tucano planes that bombed hypothetical enemy positions before ground troops captured the replica of the mosque set up at the top of a mountain.
Official photos showed one of the troops going to the top of the dome and waving an Iranian flag and a red-colored flag, a symbol of martyrdom.
The hilltop compound, which is holy to Jews and Muslims, has been at the heart of weeks of unrest between Israel and the Palestinians. Muslims call the spot the Noble Sanctuary, and the mosque is Islam's third holiest site after Mecca and Medina in Saudi Arabia. Jews revere the spot as the Temple Mount home to the biblical Temples and the holiest site in Judaism.
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General Amir Ali Hajizadeh, who heads the Guard's aerospace division, said his force deployed Shahed-121, or Witness-129, drones during the war games. The drone, unveiled in 2013, has a range of 1,700 kilometers, a 24-hour nonstop flight capability and can carry eight bombs or missiles.
Even so, the exercise appeared to be largely for show. Iranian commanders have not said how they would be able to deploy large numbers of forces against Israel, located 1,600 kilometers away, or overcome Israel's powerful and technologically advanced military.