American authorities verify that a plane crash in Iraq resulted in the deaths of all four people on board.

US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth addressed the media during a press conference at the Pentagon in Washington, DC, on March 2, 2026, to discuss the ongoing US military action in Iran.

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The United States targeted hundreds of locations across Iran, while Israel expanded its bombing campaign to Lebanon on Monday, as President Donald Trump pledged to avenge the first US fatalities in the conflict aimed at toppling Tehran's ruling clerics.

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Iranian forces launched a retaliatory strike, firing missiles and drones across the Middle East, resulting in casualties in Israel and the United Arab Emirates, in response to the conflict that began on February 28 with the death of Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

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A US KC‑135 aerial refueling aircraft crashed in western Iraq, claiming the lives of four crew members, according to the military, which clarified that the incident was not caused by "hostile fire".

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A second plane involved in the incident, which occurred at 2:00 pm Eastern Time (1900 GMT) on Thursday, landed safely, according to the military.

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US Central Command (CENTCOM) confirmed in a statement on X that "four of six crew members on board the aircraft have been confirmed deceased as rescue efforts continue".

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An investigation into the crash is underway, with CENTCOM stating that "the loss of the aircraft was not due to hostile fire or friendly fire".

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The incident brings the total number of US service members killed in the ongoing conflict with Iran to at least 11.

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Iran's military had earlier claimed that an allied group in Iraq downed the aircraft with a missile, resulting in the deaths of all crew members, according to a statement carried by state TV.

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The Islamic Resistance in Iraq, a loose alliance of Iran-backed Iraqi factions, claimed responsibility for downing the KC-135 and also stated that they had targeted another plane that managed to escape.

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Since the start of the Middle East war, the alliance has been claiming daily attacks on US interests in Iraq and across the region, although they rarely disclose the names of their targets.

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The KC-135 is at least the fourth US military aircraft lost during the war, following the downing of three F-15s by friendly fire over Kuwait.

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KC-135s, which have been in operation for over 60 years, typically have a crew of three, comprising a pilot, a copilot, and a boom operator, according to the US Air Force.

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However, some KC-135 missions require a navigator, and the aircraft can carry up to 37 passengers, as stated in an Air Force factsheet.

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Earlier in the war, which began on February 28, Kuwaiti forces mistakenly downed three American F-15E fighters, but all six crew members were able to eject safely, according to CENTCOM.

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That incident occurred during combat involving "attacks from Iranian aircraft, ballistic missiles, and drones", as described by the military command at the time.