TEHRAN – An adviser to the commander of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) says approximately 20 Israeli F-35 fighter jets were destroyed during Iran’s retaliatory missile strike against the regime’s military targets.

Brigadier General Ebrahim Jabbari, revealed this information during a conference held in Tehran on Wednesday.

The operation, known as True Promise II, took place on October 1, with Jabbari stating that an impressive 90 percent of the missiles deployed successfully struck their intended targets. 

“The IRGC simultaneously conducted cyber and electronic warfare operations to disrupt the Israeli air defense systems, facilitating the effectiveness of the missile strikes,” General Jabbari noted.

General Jabbari emphasized the significant achievements of the operation, stating, "It does not matter where we targeted; what is important is that the enemy's hollow power has been shattered."

He highlighted that the hangars housing F-35 fighter jets were among the direct targets of the operation, which he claimed successfully dealt a substantial blow to the Israeli air force.

He noted that the military and intelligence apparatus of both the Israeli regime and the United States were taken by surprise, despite their extensive advanced defensive capabilities.

General Jabbari concluded by stating that now, when Israel cannot engage in direct conflict, they are resorting to targeting military or economic sites in an attempt to claim retaliation, which he described as a clear indication of their misjudgment.

This missile barrage was Iran's response to the Israeli assassination of high-profile figures, including Hamas political bureau chief Ismail Haniyeh, Hezbollah Secretary General Seyyed Hassan Nasrallah, and IRGC general Abbas Nilforooshan. 

Haniyeh was assassinated on July 31 while he was in Tehran to attend the swearing-in ceremony of Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian.

Reports indicate that Iran launched around 200 ballistic missiles aimed at various military and intelligence installations throughout the occupied Palestinian territories.

In the wake of this attack, while the Israeli regime has issued threats of retaliation, Iranian officials have made it clear that any response from Tehran will be calculated, harsh, and proportional to the aggression faced. 

Israel launched the war on Gaza after the Palestinian Resistance movement Hamas waged the surprise Operation Al-Aqsa Storm against the occupying entity on October 7, 2023 in response to the Israeli regime's decades-long campaign of bloodletting and devastation against Palestinians.

The regime’s bloody onslaught on Gaza has so far killed more than 41,909 Palestinians, mostly women and children, and injured 97,303 others. Thousands more are also missing and presumed dead under rubble.