Credibility

[Haji 2003]

And maintaining our own

I don't know this person. But the comments after this one explain that the video he has shared is from a video game. There is a lot of such material, particularly at times of global stress.

I am increasingly thinking of blocking people on Twitter/X who don't appear to exercise some basic critical filter.

[edit] looking at his profile and past tweets he does seem pro-Resistance, but the fact remains that inaccurate posts are not helpful. I would draw the analogy with problematic hadiths that may have been written to be helpful to Shia, but doubts about which don't help us in the long run.

 

[Quran313]

Beautiful video. Thanks for sharing. Yeah, I saw on the news that some F35 jets got shot down. I don't know why people are surprised. F35 is not that great that US advertised. In 2019, Iran shot down global hawk drone which $250 million dollar (more expensive than F35). It's the MOST advanced drone on earth.

This is a video of Iran capturing US sailors in 2016:

 

Edited June 14 by Quran313

[Quran313]

I saw on the news today that Iran officer said the F35 pilot ejected before missile hit and the pilot is now captured.

US has to advertise F35 in order to SELL it. It IS a capble fighter jet, but it is NOT what US advertised.

[Ashvazdanghe]

Salam

Third F-35 fighter jet downed in Iranian territory, two Israeli pilots now in custody  

A statement by the Army added that the pilot was captured after ejecting over western Iran.

With this latest downing, Iran has neutralized three F-35 fighter jets since Israel began its aggression on Friday. Of the two others, one pilot is believed liquidated, and another too captured by Iranian forces.

https://www.tehrantimes.com/news/514337/Third-F-35-fighter-jet-downed-in-Iranian-territory-two-Israeli

  Quote

https://www.eurasiantimes.com/iran-claims-shooting-down-2-israeli-f-35s/

Expand  

 

Explainer: How Iran outsmarted Israel and downed F-35 fighter jets for the first time

By Ivan Kesic

The Iranian armed forces have reportedly shot down at least three Israeli F-35 fighter jets, marking the first time a fifth-generation stealth aircraft has been successfully downed.

On Saturday afternoon, the Iranian Army’s Public Relations Office announced that Iranian air defenses had taken down a third Israeli F-35 stealth jet, following the destruction of two other jets the previous night.

This makes Iran the first country in the world to shoot down a fifth-generation stealth fighter, 14 years after it famously downed an American RQ-170 Sentinel reconnaissance drone.

The Israeli F-35s were intercepted by Iran’s Bavar-373, a long-range surface-to-air missile (SAM) system designed to counter aircraft, cruise missiles, and ballistic missiles.

The Bavar-373 is capable of engaging targets at considerable distances, including advanced stealth fighters like the F-35 and F-22—the latter operated exclusively by the United States.

The F-35 fighters represent the most advanced aircraft in the Israeli Air Force, outclassing older, non-stealth F-15 and F-16 jets by a full generation. These jets were acquired from the United States, with the F-35 Lightning II manufactured by Lockheed Martin.

Israel’s customized variant, the F-35I, is engineered for radar evasion, enabling deep penetration missions with a reduced risk of detection or interception.

Despite its stealth capabilities, newer air defense systems developed by several countries, including Iran, have demonstrated the ability to detect and shoot down these aircraft.

Iran becomes first country to shoot down fifth-gen F-35 fighter jets belonging to Israelhttps://t.co/ovjuhwfOgC

— Press TV (@PressTV) June 13, 2025

By downing three enemy stealth fighters, Iranian air defenses have shattered the long-standing myth of Israeli “air superiority” cultivated over two decades.

The fact that these aircraft were destroyed within 48 hours, while their crews were captured, killed, or remain missing, demonstrates a high level of tactical sophistication in the command and control of Iranian armed forces.

Notably, Israeli aircraft operated with relative impunity on the first night, underscoring the strategic tactics employed by Iran to plan and execute the successful shootdowns later.

Falling for the bait

The Israeli F-35s were destroyed in Iranian airspace on the second day of Israeli aggression on Iran, after the regime commanders believed they had severely damaged Iranian air defenses on the first day, Friday.

While the number and usual deployment of Iranian radar batteries can be estimated from open-source and intelligence data, distinguishing real air defenses from decoys remains challenging. These decoys are intended to mislead anti-radiation missiles, cruise missiles, and drones.

During the attacks, Israeli regime forces primarily used drones equipped with electro-optical (EO) and infrared (IR) sensors to strike radar installations. However, once these drones detonate, their sensors are destroyed, leaving operators uncertain whether they eliminated real radar systems or decoys.

Reconnaissance drones and satellites offer insufficient resolution for precise damage assessment. The only reliable verification would require agents on the ground deep inside Iran—a high-risk and unlikely scenario.

Iran has long been known to employ sophisticated military decoys, including radar batteries. These decoys are far more advanced than simple wooden mock-ups; some emit false radar signals to mimic real activity and can cost upwards of $10,000 each.

IRGC simulates destroying Israeli F-35 hangars with ballistic missiles pic.twitter.com/E5CispnqU2

— Press TV (@PressTV) February 15, 2024

On the first night of the Israeli regime’s attacks on mostly civilian areas in Tehran, Iran combined decoys with strategic deception by withdrawing many real radar batteries from service and hiding them, while exposing only mock-ups.

Israeli drones targeted these apparent radar sites, believing they had crippled Iranian defenses and gained air superiority.

This miscalculation proved costly. On subsequent attacks, Israeli fighter jets ventured deeper into Iranian airspace, unaware that functional radar systems had been reactivated. Iranian air defenses surprised the Israeli Air Force by engaging and shooting down several advanced stealth fighters.

Had Iranian forces attempted to down jets on the first night without this element of surprise, their success would have been doubtful. Additionally, any wreckage from early shootdowns would likely have fallen into neighboring Iraq, offering Iran little opportunity for technological study.

Denial and concealment

Predictably, the Israeli regime has denied it to maintain morale among its already embattled forces and protect the false reputation of its supposedly “invincible” air power.

Acknowledging losses would also strain relations with the United States, which fears advanced Israeli F-35 technology falling into the hands of Iran, or potentially Russia or China.

The US restricts F-35 sales to a select group of trusted allies, including Israel, under strict conditions (Turkey, for example, has been excluded). The F-22 Raptor, the second American stealth fighter, is not exported to any allies due to its highly sensitive technology.

Iran army shoots down another Israeli f-35 fighter jet pic.twitter.com/YKlue23guu

— Press TV (@PressTV) June 14, 2025

Loss of these fighters would be a major blow to American military prestige, as demonstrated by the fallout from Iran’s downing of the RQ-170 Sentinel, which reportedly informed Iranian drone and subsystem development.

Despite numerous unofficial photos of wreckage circulating online, the Iranian armed forces have yet to release official images of the downed F-35s.

This restraint likely aims to conceal the extent of recovered technology and prevent adversaries from accurately assessing which advanced systems Iran and its allies may soon exploit.

---

Press TV’s website can also be accessed at the following alternate addresses:

www.presstv.co.uk

https://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2025/06/14/749845/explainer-how-iran-outsmarted-israeli-regime-shot-down-F35-fighter-jets-first-time

https://www.tasnimnews.com/en/news/2025/06/14/3335239/iran-downs-another-israeli-f-35-jet

https://en.mehrnews.com/news/233092/Iran-downs-two-Israeli-F-35-fighter-jets

https://en.irna.ir/news/85862853/Iran-shoots-down-another-F-35-fighter-jet-belonging-to-Israel

Iran’s Air Defenses Down 2 Israeli Warplanes, Female Pilot Captured

https://www.tasnimnews.com/en/news/2025/06/13/3334885/iran-s-air-defenses-down-2-israeli-warplanes-female-pilot-captured

The first Israeli fighter jet was shot down / Israeli pilot jumped with a parachute

https://sputnik.af/20250613/19010526.html

https://www.eghtesadonline.com/fa/news/2066272/خلبان-زن-اسرائیلی-که-اسیر-شد-کیست-عکس

https://www.shiachat.com/forum/topic/235089964-israel-strikes-iran/?page=7

[Haji 2003]

I've seen this image before and someone pointed out that the insignia is a bad photoshop. Could be genuine, but I did not come across counter-arguments.

[Haji 2003]

This adds a bit more credence to today's F35 news:

[Azadeh307]

Also USO (United States Oil stock) is up 11% this week - it proves that there is a threat to the oil supply or at least the fear of it and Saudi cannot make up the difference.

[Haji 2003]

More credible sources will predict how they could be proven wrong

I like his analysis, but since I do not know much about military affairs I can't say that he gets it right all the time. 

What adds to his analysis is that he's happy to predict how he could be proven right or wrong:

[Haji 2003]

On 6/16/2025 at 7:26 PM, Azadeh307 said:

Also USO (United States Oil stock) is up 11% this week - it proves that there is a threat to the oil supply or at least the fear of it and Saudi cannot make up the difference.

 

Using the invasion of Iraq as an example, based on a query to chatgpt, prices rose from late 2002 to early 2003 from $25 a barrel to $35. However, by April 2003, they had fallen back to $25 as the war came to a conclusion pretty quickly, and there was no long-term impact on the supply of oil.

[Haji 2003]

A lot of misinformation from MSM. 
 

some pointers towards reality ie. Concrete Facts

1. If the us needs to get involved, Israel is not as strong as it thought

2. Israel’s stopping people posting images - must be damage occurring

3. uk is not helping British people leave Israel - to avoid Israel looking weak

[Haji 2003]

Focus on what people do and not what they say

There is a debate about whether or not Iran's missiles are having any impact. On the one side Israelis say not much on the other we have people making up videos or re-using old videos. This is why I don't post messages with the latter.

But you can get an indication of the impact of the missiles from the following. Placing a ban makes little sense if there is no impact - in fact, it would boost Israeli morale.

 

[Haji 2003]

Consider the other side's need to manipulate

The stronger it is, the more likely they are not as successful as they claim to be

 

[Haji 2003]

A matter of framing

There was a tweet I saw and did not post, by someone who is anti-Israel and whose videos showed how successful Iranian strikes have been. This was because there were subsequent replies to that tweet saying that the images were AI generated.

This tweet makes a similar point, but it is tweeted by an Israeli source. Their 'framing' is that the destruction shows how cruel the Iranian have been. But crucially there are no observations about the images being doctored.

Of course our perspective would challenge the framing, but at least the information we are using is more genuine - which I think is the more important factor.

(If you place your cursor over the image below you can scroll within the window, without having to leave this site and go to X/Twitter)

 

 

[Haji 2003]

Corordination?

This is an example of a point being made, and back up with evidence. It's up to us to decide how credible the evidence is and the extent to which it supports the claim being made.

Interesting datapoint to suggest that it's happening i.e. politcians across the political spectrum being told what their talking points should be. Scroll through the link below. Two separate examples, the OP and a reply to it.

?

[Haji 2003]

I can't see why he would lie

He clearly would be in possession of the necessary info ... 

[Haji 2003]

I like the reasoning

 

[Haji 2003]

Details matter

This 'news' item is currently making the rounds. The problem with it is that it makes little sense, which raises questions about its credibility. Purchasing something is one thing, taking delivery is another and yet a third factor is having your people trained on that equipment.

So, thinking about the detail, the way this is pitched as an immediate solution to Iran's air force issues seems off.