The US Department of Defense announced the names of the six American servicemen who died in a plane crash over Iraq, Reuters reported, quoted by BTA.
The military were on board a KC-135 aerial refueling aircraft, which was supporting US military operations against Iran.
According to the Pentagon, a second plane was also involved in the incident. The military specified that the crash was not the result of enemy fire or the so-called. friendly fire, with the causes of the incident still under investigation.
The "Islamic Resistance in Iraq" group, uniting armed factions supported by Iran, claimed responsibility a few days ago for the downing of a US military tanker plane in western Iraq. In a statement, the pro-Iranian armed group said it shot down the US KC-135 refueling plane in defense of Iraq's sovereignty and airspace.
Three of the service members who died were from the 6th Air Refueling Wing, based at MacDill Air Force Base near Tampa, Florida:
John A. Kleiner, Maj., 33, of Auburn, Alabama;
Ariana G. Savino, Capt., 31, of Covington, Washington;
Ashley B. Pruitt, Tech. Sgt., 34, of Bardstown, Kentucky;
The other three service members served with the 121st Air Refueling Wing of the Rickenbacker Air National Guard in Columbus, Ohio:
Seth R. Koval, Captain, 38, of Marysville, Indiana;
Curtis J. Angst, Captain, 30, of Wilmington, Ohio;
Tyler H. Simmons, Technical Sergeant, 28, of Columbus, Ohio.
The investigation into the incident is ongoing.
The KC-135 is the fourth publicly confirmed aircraft that Washington has lost during US military operations against Iran.
Last week, three US fighter jets were mistakenly shot down by Kuwaiti air defense forces.
The United States has urged its citizens to leave Iraq immediately due to increased security risks related to Iran, FOCUS reported.
The US Embassy in Baghdad announced this, Al-Awsat reported.
According to the department, pro-Iranian armed groups are carrying out and instigating indiscriminate attacks against American citizens and US-affiliated targets in Iraq, including the autonomous Kurdistan Region of Iraq.
''There have been attacks against American citizens, American interests, and critical infrastructure. These groups have attacked American diplomatic facilities, American businesses, and US-operated energy infrastructure, and are threatening to continue to attack them. Terrorist militias linked to Iran have also attacked hotels frequented by foreigners and other US-linked sites across Iraq, including the Iraqi region, the warning said, adding that US citizens face a risk of kidnapping.
The Swiss government said it had reviewed requests from US military and government aircraft to fly over its territory and, citing the Neutrality Act, had denied permission for two military flights related to the conflict around Iran.
At the same time, three other flights were approved, Reuters reported, quoted by BTA.
A government statement said the Neutrality Act prohibits overflights by countries involved in a conflict when they have a military objective related to hostilities.
„Humanitarian and medical transits are permitted, including the transport of injured persons, as well as overflights not related to the conflict,“ the statement said.
The three approved requests concern two transport aircraft and one technical aircraft, the Swiss authorities said.
Switzerland also warned that future overflight requests would be rejected if they exceeded normal air traffic or if the purpose of the flight could not be clearly established.