— Israeli Air Force (@IAFsite) March 16, 2026
In a Hebrew-language statement on X, the IAF said the jet was destroyed in an attack on Tehran’s Mehrabad International Airport.
“[T]he plane was used by Ali Khamenei, leader of the Iranian terror regime, additional senior officials from the terror regime, and elements in the Iranian military, to advance military procurement and manage relations with Axis countries through domestic and international flights,” the military branch said.
“The destruction of the plane impairs the ability to coordinate between the leadership of the Iranian terror regime and Axis countries, in building military power, and in the regime’s rehabilitation capability.
Thus, another strategic asset has been removed from the Iranian regime.”
The Israeli Air Force said Monday that it had destroyed a plane belonging to Iran’s former supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
The phrase “Axis” refers to Iran’s Axis of Resistance, which includes Hezbollah in Lebanon, the Houthis in Yemen, and several terror groups in Iraq.
The plane strike took place amid fevered speculation about the health status of Iran’s new supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, who is believed to have been severely wounded in the Feb. 28 Israeli strike that killed his father and other family members.
