US Central Command confirms all six members of U.S. KC-135 refueling aircraft in Iraq killed

CAIRO – 13 March 2026: The US Central Command announced that all crew members of the refueling plane that crashed in Iraq have been killed, after the pro-Iranian Islamic Resistance Forces claimed its responsibility for downing the aircraft on Thursday.

“All six crew members aboard a U.S. KC-135 refueling aircraft that went down in western Iraq are now confirmed deceased. The aircraft was lost while flying over friendly airspace March 12 during Operation Epic Fury,” the US Central Command said on its official X.

It added that investigation into the circumstances of the incident is underway, but noted that “the loss of the aircraft was not due to hostile fire or friendly fire.” “The identities of the service members are being withheld until 24 hours after next of kin have been notified,” the statement read.

On its Telegram channel, the Islamic Resistance in Iraq announced that their fighters shot down two US KC-135 aircrafts, on Thursday. 

“In defense of our country’s sovereignty and its airspace, which has been violated by the occupation forces’ aircraft, the mujahideen [fighters] of the Islamic Resistance in Iraq targeted- with appropriate weapons- a second KC-135 aircraft belonging to the American occupation in western Iraq during the past 24 hours. Its crew managed to escape with it [the aircraft] after it was hit, and it made an emergency landing at one of the enemy’s airports,” said the Resistance in a statement on Friday.

Since the US and Israel have launched military attacks on Iran on February 28, Iran and its allies in Iraqi Islamic Resistance Forces and Lebanese Hezbollah launched attacks against US military bases in the Gulf States and Israel. The regional war started to spillover gradually, causing human causalities on the both sides. US and Israel killed several Iranian leaders including the late Supreme Leader Khamenei. 

On March 8, the Iranian Ministry of Health announced that more than 1,200 people had been killed, including about 200 women and 200 children under the age of 12, while more than 10,000 civilians had been injured. On March 11, the US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) reported that at least 1,825 people had been killed, including 1,276 civilians, among them at least 200 children, as well as 197 military personnel and 352 individuals whose status was not yet determined, AFP reported on Friday.

Meanwhile, the Israeli Magen David Adom (MDA) announced that a total of 14 people were killed, while the Israeli Ministry of Health announced on Thursday that the number of people injured since the start of the war on Iran has reached 2,745, including 85 who are still hospitalized, AFP added.

In response to the continuous US and Israeli attacks, Iranian attacks also targeted some vital oil refinery and fields in Gulf States like Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, und Bahrain. Additionally, the closure of Hormuz Strait led to a high increase of the oil prices globally; the Brent crude futures closed above $100 a barrel for the first time since August 2022, BBC reported on Thursday.