The US loses tanker plane over Iraq. Pro-Iranian forces claim responsibility (UPD)

The US lost a KC-135 Stratotanker tanker aircraft in western Iraq.

This was reported by the US Central Command.

The incident occurred "in friendly airspace" during an operation against Iran, in which two aircraft participated — one crashed in western Iraq, and the second landed safely. Photos of it with minor damage are published by Osinter.

According to CNN, there were at least five crew members on board the plane that crashed. There were no official reports of deaths or injuries.

The agency stressed that the crash was not caused by hostile or friendly fire, but the reasons have not yet been revealed. At the same time, the pro-Iranian group "Islamic Resistance in Iraq" said that it was they who shot down the plane.

UPD at 1:40 PM: Four American service members have been killed in a tanker plane crash over Iraq, the US Central Command said. There were six people on board, with the fate of two others currently unknown.

The loss of the tanker was the fourth known loss of an aircraft in the war with Iran. Last week, three F-15E Strike Eagles were shot down over Kuwait by friendly fire; all six crew members ejected safely.

War in Iran

On the morning of February 28, the United States and Israel launched attacks on Iran. These attacks killed Iranʼs Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and almost the entire military leadership of the country — about 40 key high-ranking officials. A new ayatollah was elected on March 8, Mojtaba Khamenei (the son of the deceased Ali Khamenei).

Iran responded by launching ballistic missile attacks on Israel and US bases in the Gulf states of Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar and the UAE. Some Iranian drones and missiles have targeted infrastructure and residential areas in Arab countries.

The Wall Street Journal reported that President Donald Trump has told his aides that he would support eliminating Iranʼs new supreme leader if he refuses to comply with US demands.

The conflict has brought tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow sea corridor between Iran and Oman that connects the Persian Gulf to the Indian Ocean, to a near standstill. About a fifth of the worldʼs oil exports pass through it, tens of millions of barrels a day. Markets reacted immediately, sending oil, gas and precious metals soaring in price, with oil soaring above $100 a barrel.

For more news and in-depth stories from Ukraine, please follow us on X.