A post shared on X claims Israel knocked out the entirety of Iran’s air defenses.

All of Iran’s air defense systems are out of service: Wall Street Journal, quoting an Israeli official

— Guy Elster (@guyelster) October 27, 2024

Verdict: Misleading

The WSJ reported that four air defense systems, including most of Iran’s S-300s, were knocked out. It does not state that all of Iran’s air defense systems were knocked out.

Fact Check:

Israel attacked Iran on Oct. 27, with satellite imagery showing damage to several Iranian installations, according to BBC News. (RELATED: Are Over 75% of the World’s Countries Adopting the New BRICS Payment System?)

Social media users are claiming that all of Iran’s air defense systems were knocked out. One user wrote, “All of Iran’s air defense systems are out of service: Wall Street Journal, quoting an Israeli official.”

This claim is misleading. There is no evidence that Israel knocked out all of Iran’s air defense systems. The Wall Street Journal (WSJ)  reported that “Israeli warplanes struck Iranian military assets in three provinces, including three Russian-supplied aerial defense systems known as S-300, according to U.S. and Israeli officials. A fourth aerial defense system was also hit. An Israeli official added that all the air-defense systems were rendered unusable.”

It appears that the WSJ reported that these four air defense systems were knocked out, not that every single part of Iran’s air defenses had been rendered ineffective. The WSJ also reported that Iran also has other air defenses, though it did report that the strikes did hit most of the S-300 air defense systems.

The Institute for the Study of War (ISW), a think tank that focuses on conflicts abroad, stated in its Oct. 27 update that “The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) inflicted serious damage to the Iranian integrated air defense network during its strikes on Iran on October 25.” In its update, though, the ISW did not state that all of Iran’s air defenses were no longer in service.