Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said on Tuesday it has captured a U.S. uncrewed submarine at the entrance to the Strait of Hormuz, offering a rare insight at how underwater drones are being ​used in military operations.

Iranian state media reported the craft was a Dive-LD, a ​large autonomous underwater vehicle made by California defense firm Anduril. The 19-foot (5.8-metre) ⁠submersible can carry out duties like mine countermeasures, seabed mapping, intelligence collection and the ​inspection of undersea infrastructure such as cables and pipelines, the business has said. “We detained one ​of the most advanced, clever and unmanned submarines of the terrorist American army near the entrance to the Strait of Hormuz. This submersible is equipped with the latest technologies,” the Revolutionary Guards Navy said ​in a statement broadcast by Iranian state media.

In response, a Pentagon spokesperson revealed a ​underwater drone had “malfunctioned more than a day ago.” “It was surveying regional seas in support of ongoing operations. ‌The ⁠defective drone was an earlier model that neither collected sensitive data nor carried any classified sonar or radar technology,” the spokesperson stated.

Anduril confirmed the loss of one of its vessels, but minimized the seriousness of the incident. “Dive-LD is an attritable autonomous system, meaning it ​is built from the ​outset to operate ⁠in perilous conditions where loss of the vehicle is a predicted possibility,” a company representative stated.

The U.S. Navy is spending extensively in ​unmanned naval systems, including undersea and surface vehicles, as it seeks ​cheaper ways ⁠to monitor broad expanses of ocean, gather intelligence and track hostile ships and submarines without putting troops at danger.

According to Anduril’s website, Dive-LD can operate for up to 10 days ⁠without returning ​to base and is meant to dive to depths ​of as much as 6,000 metres (19,700 ft). Dive-LD units cost roughly $2.5 million each, U.S. military news site DefenseScoop ​reported in 2024.

The Azad Jammu and Kashmir government has decided to launch the “Suthra Kashmir” programme under its 100-day reform agenda, introducing a new waste management model inspired by Punjab’s “Suthra Punjab” initiative.

Under the programme, solid waste management services across AJK will be handed over to the private sector, while the government and its institutions will primarily perform a regulatory and supervisory role.

The decision was discussed at a meeting chaired by Local Government and Rural Development Secretary Irshad Ahmed Qureshi, where officials finalised key measures for implementing the programme.

The meeting was informed that advertisements seeking services from private waste management companies would be published in newspapers within a week.

Qureshi said solid waste management would be outsourced at the district level. Once contracts were awarded, the selected private operators would be responsible for providing the machinery, vehicles and workforce required for cleaning operations.

The AJK government has also decided to introduce uniform standards for sanitation operations across the territory, including a common design for machinery and uniforms for sanitation workers.

A comprehensive system will be developed for collection, transportation and proper disposal of waste.

Officials said the initiative would not be restricted to major cities. Rural communities would also be brought under the programme as the government seeks to establish a wider waste collection network.

At village level, authorities plan to work with elected local government representatives, youth councillors and women councillors to facilitate door-to-door waste collection.

The Suthra Kashmir initiative forms part of the new government’s broader 100-day reform programme.

Other proposed measures include establishing green areas, purchasing new operational vehicles for waste management, developing model villages and undertaking beautification projects in urban areas.

Mayors and representatives of municipal corporations welcomed the initiative and expressed their willingness to work with private operators to improve sanitation services.

Representatives from district councils also welcomed the decision to include villages, noting that solid waste management had increasingly become a challenge not only for cities but also for rural communities.

Officials said ward councillors, youth representatives, women councillors and other elected representatives would be involved in cleanliness campaigns to strengthen community participation.

The meeting was attended by Director General Local Government and Rural Development Tahir Ashraf, Local Government Board Secretary Ashfaq Ahmed Noor and other officials.

Participants were briefed on waste management and the proposed model village programme.

Deputy Director Babar Minhas also presented an overview of the existing solid waste management situation in AJK, its environmental impact, the Suthra Punjab model and waste management systems operating through private-sector partnerships elsewhere in South Asia.

• Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari on Tuesday called for a debate in the National Assembly over Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi’s statement on the breakdown of the system.

Bilawal told the media in London that Mohsin Naqvi was speaking his own thoughts when he spoke about the failure of system but he (Bilawal) was speaking his own. He stated Mohsin Naqvi rarely attends the assembly meetings, he should come there frequently.

He stated the solution to inflation, unemployment and poverty was not the creation of new provinces but democracy and empowerment of the people. He added that the resolutions were unanimously passed by the Punjab and Sindh assembly, adding that the PPP accorded attention to the opinion of the people and the elected representatives.

He said the subject should be discussed in parliament and views of elected representatives and people should be given appropriate significance.

“We should not leave the fate of the country to a few businessmen,” Bilawal remarked. He stressed that democracy and popular engagement in decision-making were vital to promote democracy and confront the economic and social difficulties of the country.