File photo 

By The South Asia Times

WASHINGTON - A US military refueling aircraft crashed in western Iraq on Thursday, killing four American service members, while a pro-Iran armed group claimed it had shot down the plane, though US officials said the incident was not caused by hostile fire.

The US Central Command (CENTCOM) said the aircraft involved was a Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker, a tanker used to refuel other warplanes mid-air during combat operations. Two additional personnel who were aboard the aircraft remain missing as rescue efforts continue, according to CNN.

In a statement, CENTCOM said the crash occurred during Operation Epic Fury, the US military campaign linked to the ongoing conflict involving Iran.

The US military said two aircraft were involved in an incident over western Iraq, with one plane crashing while the second managed to land safely.

“This was not due to hostile fire or friendly fire,” the military said, without providing further details about the cause of the crash.

However, the Islamic Resistance of Iraq, an umbrella group of Iran-aligned militias operating in Iraq, claimed responsibility for downing the aircraft. The group said it targeted two tanker aircraft, alleging that one was destroyed while the second was forced to make an emergency landing.

Meanwhile, Yechiel Leiter, Israel’s ambassador to the United States, said on social media that one of the aircraft involved had landed safely in Israel.

Images circulating on Telegram and shared by Israeli public broadcaster Kan appeared to show a damaged KC-135 aircraft with part of its tail fin missing. Markings on the aircraft indicated it was from Beale Air Force Base in California, home to the US Air Force Reserve’s 940th Air Refueling Wing, according to CNN.

The deaths raise the number of US troops killed in connection with the current Iran-related conflict to 11. Earlier this month, six US Army Reserve soldiers were killed in an attack at Shuaiba Port in Kuwait, while another service member later died after being wounded in an attack in Saudi Arabia.

US and allied forces in Iraq have faced repeated attacks from pro-Iran militias since the war began, most commonly through drone strikes targeting military facilities.

The KC-135 tanker, based on the Boeing 707 airliner, has been in service since the 1960s and remains a key aircraft for extending the range and endurance of combat jets by refueling them during flight.