The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said on Wednesday its F-35I fighter jet – “Adir” – shot down an Iranian Air Force YAK-130 fighter aircraft over the skies of Tehran as bombings continued for the fifth day.
The IDF said in a post on X this is the first shootdown in history of a manned fighter aircraft by an F-35 fighter jet.
The F-35 of American defense and aerospace manufacturer Lockheed Martin is branded as one of the most advance fighter jets in the world, with a shape, internal sensors, weapons and as well as fuel contributing to the aircraft’s stealth, or “low observability.”
Loud explosions continued to rock Iran’s capital Tehran on Wednesday as the war with the United States and Israel entered its fifth day, with Israeli government putting the yet-to-be announced successor of assassinated Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on assassination notice.
The explosions around Tehran came at dawn, according to Iran state television, while Israel’s military said its air defenses had been activated to intercept incoming Iranian missiles and explosions were heard around Jerusalem.
The intense missile and drone exchange that has shaken the entire Middle East region was triggered by the US-Israel strikes on Iran that led to the death of Khamenei last weekend.
Five days into the war that US President Donald Trump suggested could last a month or longer, nearly 800 people have been killed in Iran, including some Trump said he had considered as possible future leaders of the country.
Parallelly, explosions continued to hit Lebanon, where Israel said it is retaliating against Hezbollah militants which has joined the fight in support of Iran. Lebanon’s state-run media reported that at least four people were killed in an Israeli strike that hit a residential complex in the city of Baalbeck.
The IDF also said on Wednesday that it carried out a series of strikes on the Basij and internal security command centers in Tehran belonging to the Iranian terror regime.
The targeted command centers were used by the Iranian regime to maintain control throughout Iran, IDF said.
The IDF also struck the regime’s missile launchers and other systems, it said.
