Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Korova Coleman.
The Pentagon says all six crew members who were aboard a U.S.
military refueling plane have died in a collision with another plane in western Iraq.
The refueling plane crash-landed.
The second plane involved in the collision landed safely.
NPR's Quill Lawrence reports.
CENTCOM announced that two US refueling tanker aircraft were involved in an incident in friendly airspace.
One of them, a KC-135 tanker, went down in western Iraq, which borders Jordan.
The second tanker landed safely.
CENTCOM said there was no hostile or friendly fire involved in the mishap,
that KC-135 is used to refuel jets in mid-air and usually carries a small crew of three to six airmen.
Rescue operations continued through the night.
Central Command does not identify fallen troops until 24 hours after next of kin have been notified.
The Pentagon said bombardment of Iran will continue to intensify and that U.S.
forces are targeting Iran's ability to lay mines in the Strait of Hormuz,
where a fifth of the world's oil supply transits.
Quaid Lawrence, NPR News.
Germany's chancellor is criticizing the Trump administration for temporarily lifting sanctions on Russian oil.
The Trump administration says this is intended to bring down surging energy prices in the midst of the U.S.
and Israeli attacks on Iran.