Iraqi Resistance Claims to Have Shot Down US KC-135 Aircraft
BAGHDAD – The Islamic Resistance Group in Iraq (IRI) announced Friday morning that it had shot down a US KC-135 aircraft and forced another aircraft into emergency landing. The claim contradicts US Central Command (CENTCOM) statements that both aircraft were affected by a non-combat incident.
In its statement, the Iran-affiliated Iraqi resistance group stated that it had targeted another aircraft in western Iraq with appropriate weapons. The group added that the second aircraft “made an emergency landing at one of the enemy’s airports, and its crew managed to escape.”
The Iraqi resistance faction also stated that it had conducted 31 drone and missile operations against US bases in Iraq and the surrounding region in the preceding 24 hours. Iraqi armed factions announced they had also targeted military installations across Iraq.
The Islamic Resistance Group in Iraq is an umbrella organisation for several resistance factions in Iraq, typically aligned with Shia political movements. They are frequently reported to receive logistical support from Iran.
Iranian state television cited the Khatam al-Anbiya headquarters of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, which stated that an American aircraft was shot down in western Iraq “by a missile from resistance factions,” confirming that the crew was killed.
According to Israeli Channel 12, the second refuelling aircraft landed at Ben Gurion Airport. The other aircraft is reported to have crashed near Turaibil, along the Iraq-Jordan border, according to CBS News, citing Iraqi intelligence sources.
CENTCOM had previously announced that a refuelling aircraft had crashed in western Iraq. The command claimed that the incident was not the result of “enemy or friendly fire,” and noted that rescue efforts were ongoing.
CENTCOM stated in a posting on its X account Friday evening that the aircraft was a KC-135 and crashed whilst flying “in friendly airspace during Operation Epic Fury against Iran.”
The command explained that the incident involved two aircraft, one of which crashed in western Iraq, and the other landed safely, according to the statement.
A US official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Reuters that the aircraft carried six soldiers.
The aircraft, designed by Boeing in the 1950s and early 1960s, forms the backbone of the US military air refuelling fleet and is essential to allow aircraft to continue their missions without landing to refuel.
Seven American military personnel have been killed since the United States and Israel began launching air strikes against Iran on 28 February. Reuters reported on Tuesday that up to 150 American soldiers have been wounded in the conflict.
The incident occurs amid escalating attacks on Iran as part of an ongoing US-Israeli military campaign that began on 28 February, and retaliatory strikes launched by Tehran against Gulf, Iraqi and Jordanian territories under the pretext of “targeting US military bases.”