Iranian military claims to have shot down U.S. spy plane

Iranian media reports U.S. spy plane that violated airspace along the eastern border was shot down and is in possession of Iranian troops.

Iran's military said on Sunday it had shot down a U.S. reconnaissance drone aircraft in eastern Iran, a military source told state television.

Iran's military has downed an intruding RQ-170 American drone in eastern Iran," Iran's Arabic-language Al Alam state television network quoted the unnamed source as saying.

Iran is locked in a dispute with the U.S.¬ and its allies over Tehran's disputed nuclear program, which the West believes is aimed at the development of nuclear weapons. Iran denies the accusations, saying its nuclear program is entirely peaceful.

On Saturday, Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak said that Iran is getting closer to developing a nuclear bomb, and that new and more crippling sanctions should be imposed on the Islamic Republic.

Speaking on "Meet the Press," a Channel 2 program, Barak denied however that the latest blasts that occurred in Iran mark the beginning of a military campaign.

Barak said actions against Iran are being carried out in the diplomatic sphere, through sanctions and through the activities of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). When asked if a clandestine war against Iran has already begun, he replied: "I think the answer to that is no."