CENTCOM denies F-35 jets were destroyed in Iran's strike, after the IRGC said three were wrecked

The United States Central Command (CENTCOM) said on Thursday, 30 July 2026 (8 Mordad 1405) local time that none of its aircraft were destroyed or damaged in Iran's recent strikes, and that all missiles and drones fired were either intercepted or failed to reach their targets.

The statement came in response to an announcement by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. Earlier the same day the IRGC said its aerospace force had struck the parking ramp and maintenance hangar for F-35 jets at the Al Azraq air base with several ballistic missiles, completely destroying three F-35 aircraft and inflicting heavy damage on three others. The two accounts of the strike's outcome are in direct contradiction, and neither has so far been confirmed by an independent third party.

In the same statement CENTCOM also rejected reports that the tanker MT Nora had passed through the naval blockade, saying the blockade remains in place. What matters for markets is the persistence of the geopolitical risk premium in oil prices: Brent crude traded in a range of 89 to 91 dollars a barrel on Thursday, 30 July, depending on the time and the reporting source.