Iran claims it shot down 2 US C-130 support aircraft, 2 Black Hawk helicopters in Isfahan

ISTANBUL

Iran claimed on Sunday that it had shot down two US C-130 support aircraft and two Black Hawk helicopters in Isfahan, southern Iran.

They were destroyed during a US mission to recover the second crew member of a downed F-15 fighter jet, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said in a statement carried by the state news agency IRNA.

The semi-official Tasnim News Agency, citing Iranian police, earlier claimed a US C-130 support aircraft was destroyed "by heavy fire from a police special forces unit."

On Telegram, the state-run Press TV had shared photos purportedly showing wreckage from the plane that was allegedly downed.

Some initial US reports on social media claimed that during the process of rescuing the second crew member of an F-15 fighter jet downed over Iran, US forces blew up their own plane rather than let it "fall into Iranian hands."

No official statement has yet been issued by the US regarding the Iranian claims.

Regional tensions have escalated since the US and Israel launched a joint offensive on Iran on Feb. 28, killing more than 1,340 people to date, including then-Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.

Tehran has retaliated with drone and missile strikes targeting Israel, as well as Jordan, Iraq, and Gulf countries hosting US military assets. Iran has also restricted the movement of ships through the Strait of Hormuz.