Iraqi Militia Claims Attack on Two US Military Refueling Aircraft
Xinhua News Agency, Baghdad, March 13 - The Iraqi militia group "Islamic Resistance Organization" issued a statement on the 13th, saying that they attacked two U.S. Air Force refueling aircraft, one of which was shot down.
The organization stated in a statement: "To defend our sovereignty and airspace from the invasion of enemy aircraft, we shot down a U.S. KC-135 refueling aircraft in the western region of Iraq."
Subsequently, the organization issued another statement saying that within the past 24 hours, they attacked a second U.S. KC-135 refueling aircraft in western Iraq, causing the aircraft to make an emergency landing.
Earlier, according to Iranian media citing a spokesperson for the Iranian Armed Forces' Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters, a U.S. refueling aircraft was hit by a defense system in western Iraq and crashed, with all personnel on board killed.
According to U.S. Central Command, a U.S. KC-135 refueling aircraft crashed in western Iraq. The U.S. military stated that this incident "was not caused by enemy fire or friendly fire." U.S. media reported that U.S. officials said there were at least 5 crew members on the refueling aircraft that crashed in Iraq, and the casualty situation is currently unclear.
The Islamic Resistance Organization attacked two U.S. KC-135 refueling aircraft in Western Iraq on March 13, claiming to have shot one down and forced the other to land. U.S. Central Command confirmed the crash of a KC-135 but stated it was not caused by enemy fire. At least five crew members were aboard the downed aircraft, with casualty details still unclear.
- Islamic Resistance Organization claims to have shot down a U.S. KC-135 refueling aircraft in Western Iraq.
- A second KC-135 was attacked, resulting in a forced landing.
- U.S. Central Command confirmed a KC-135 crash but stated it was not due to enemy fire.
- At least 5 crew members were reported on the downed aircraft, with casualty status unclear.