Secret factory in Russia expands production of Iranian-designed drones - CNN
A clandestine factory in Russia is significantly scaling up production of Iranian-designed drones for use in the Ukraine war, according to a CNN investigation.
A clandestine factory in Russia is significantly scaling up production of Iranian-designed drones for use in the Ukraine war, according to a CNN investigation.
The plant, located in the Alabuga Special Economic Zone in Russia's southern Tatarstan region, utilizes a range of Chinese components in the production of these Iranian-designed attack and surveillance drones, according to the report.
Satellite imagery analyzed by CNN and experts shows that two additional buildings have been constructed at the site, and security increased.
In June 2023, US intelligence alleged Iran was aiding Russia in building a drone manufacturing facility in Yelabuga, within the Alabuga Special Economic Zone on the steppes of the Tatarstan region.
The plant focuses on producing Shahed-136 drones domestically, which Russia rebranded as the Geran-2. The collaboration aims to manufacture approximately 6,000 drones by mid-2025, ensuring a consistent supply for Russia's military needs.
CNN's analysis of associated social media accounts and assessments from Ukrainian defense intelligence sources reveal the factory's significant expansion and its reliance on a young, low-skilled workforce of Russian teenagers and African women.
The sources, who spoke to CNN anonymously for safety reasons, said that the factory is now also producing thousands of “decoy” drones, designed to exhaust Ukrainian defenses.
An armed Shi'ite movement which controls most of northern Yemen, the Houthis are armed by Iran and part of its so-called Axis of Resistance against Israel.
The group is one of Iran's only robust armed allies after rebels toppled Syria's Bashar al-Assad in Syria while Palestinian Hamas and Lebanese Hezbollah have been degraded by Israeli ground and air raids for much of the last 14 months.
"We are determined to cut off this terror arm of the Iranian axis of evil. We will persist in this until we complete the job," Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a video statement from the the air force command center in Tel Aviv.
In a statement, the Israeli military said it had struck military infrastructure at Sana’a International Airport, two power stations and three Red Sea ports including the country's largest, Hodeida.
"These military targets were used by the Houthi terrorist regime to smuggle Iranian weapons into the region and for the entry of senior Iranian officials, the Israeli military said. "This is a further example of the Houthis' exploitation of civilian infrastructure for military purposes."
The Houthis have launched multiple missile attacks at Israel in recent weeks, setting off warning sirens and stoking unease just as other military fronts mostly die down.
Yemen's rulers deny being a proxy of Tehran and say their fight against Israel and the United States is in solidarity with the Palestinian people.
"The Houthi terrorist regime is a central part of the Iranian axis of terror, and their attacks on international shipping vessels and routes continue to destabilize the region and the wider world," the Israeli military said.
"(It) operates as an autonomous terrorist group while relying on Iranian cooperation and funding to carry out its attacks."
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said this week that Israel would dole out the same treatment it gave Assad, Hamas and Hezbollah to the Houthis, while Defense Minister Israel Katz, vowed to "behead" Houthi leaders.
