U.S. military rescues missing airman shot down in Iran, Trump says; renew warning to hit power plants

WASHINGTON, Apr 05 (APP): A missing US airman has been rescued in Iran after his F-15E fighter jet was shot down on Friday, President Donald Trump announced in a social media post on Sunday.

“At my direction, the U.S. Military sent dozens of aircraft, armed with the most lethal weapons in the World, to retrieve him.

He sustained injuries, but he will be just fine,” he said.

“This brave Warrior was behind enemy lines in the treacherous mountains of Iran, being hunted down by our enemies, who were getting closer and closer by the hour.”

Seemingly emboldened by the success of the rescue operation, President Trump issued a new ultimatum to Iran to end its chokehold over the Strait of Hormuz, a major Persian Gulf waterway for the transport of oil and gas, by Apr. 6.

If Iran’s government did not, he said, U.S. forces would target the country’s energy infrastructure, which supplies power for millions of Iranian civilians.

“Tuesday will be Power Plant Day, and Bridge Day, all wrapped up in one, in Iran. There will be nothing like it!!!” Trump wrote on social media. The president has previously postponed his deadline to attack twice and the Omani foreign ministry said officials had discussed how to reopen the Strait of Hormuz with Iranian counterparts without reaching a definitive agreement.

The loss of F-15E fighter had prompted a U.S. rescue mission that quickly recovered one crew member. But another from the fighter aircraft had remained missing as of late Friday.

Trump hailed the operations as evidence of U.S. military superiority and called for national unity in celebrating the successful missions, saying, “We will never leave an American warfighter behind.”

Trump described the mission as “one of the most daring Search and Rescue Operations in U.S. history,” noting that the service member sustained injuries but is expected to recover.

Vice President J D Vance congratulated called the rescue effort “one of the most amazing operations ever” and congratulated everyone whose skill and bravery made it possible.