TEHRAN — On the sidelines of a military drill in northwest Iran on Friday morning, commander of the Army Ground Force Kioumars Heydari said that Iran will test four new weaponries in the drill.

There was no word how long the drill will last.

Heydari also said that Iran will not tolerate foreign presence in the northwest region of the country. 

“The overt and covert presence of the Zionist regime's proxies and the possibility of a significant number of Daesh terrorists in regional countries add to the importance of this exercise,” Brigadier General Haydari said.

Daesh militants were brought into the region at the height of the 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan, he said.

“Since we are not sure whether they have departed the area, the drill will convey a message to them. They and the Zionists must know they have no place in the region, and that the armed forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran are fairly sensitive to them and will deal with them wherever they see them,” the senior commander stressed, according to Press TV.

He went on to say that various types of home-grown military equipment manufactured by the Islamic Republic of Iran Army and its Ground Forces will be used during the exercise.

Brigadier General Haydari highlighted that four new indigenous military equipment, including a long-endurance drone which can hit its targets with pinpoint accuracy, electronic warfare systems that can be very effective in defense and offense, and two anti-tank rifles will be tested, and their range and accuracy measured during the maneuvers.

“We will also evaluate the caliber of indigenous smart artillery shells during the exercise,” he noted.

The Army Ground Force has started a military exercise in the northwestern part of Iran. It is testing armored, artillery, drone, and electronic warfare units under air cover provided by helicopter gunships.

The drill, codenamed Fatehan-e Khaybar (Conquerors of Khaybar), kicked off during a ceremony on Friday, with General Heydari and representatives of the General Staff of the Armed Forces in attendance.

Iranian unmanned aerial vehicles initially flew over the zone, conducted a surveillance and transmitted aerial photographs of the area to the command center, before the 25th Rapid Reaction Brigade and the Islamic Republic of Iran Air Force (IRIAF) helicopters carried out a mock air assault.

Army artillery units then fired a series of rounds at designated targets, and subsequently armored units carried out strike force operations.

Throughout the Conquerors of Khaybar drills, IRIAF Bell AH-1 Cobra attack helicopters will reportedly provide air support to operating units.

Iran’s Armed Forces regularly hold military maneuvers to elevate their preparedness and military prowess.

The drills serve as a warning message to the enemies against any act of aggression against the Islamic Republic.