Iranian Claims of Foiled US Rescue Operation
Iranian military officials have claimed that the recent US rescue operation, which successfully saved two trapped American airmen, was “completely foiled.” This statement came in response to US President Donald Trump’s announcement on Sunday that an officer had been rescued in a search and rescue operation and was “SAFE and SOUND.”
Ebrahim Zolfaghari, the spokesman for the military’s central command, Khatam Al-Anbiya, stated that the so-called US military rescue operation, which was planned as a deception and escape mission at an abandoned airport in southern Isfahan under the pretext of recovering the pilot of a downed aircraft, was completely foiled. In a video statement carried by state television, he added that “two C-130 military transport planes and two Black Hawk helicopters were destroyed” during the two-day operation. The US has not confirmed this claim.
He further criticized Trump’s statements, saying that the president went ahead with “empty rhetoric and diversion, although the reality on the ground demonstrates the superior position of Iran’s powerful armed forces.”
Details of the Rescue Mission
The rescue mission involved a complex operation that saw US special forces destroy two of their own planes as they completed an audacious rescue of the airman trapped behind enemy lines. The airman, alongside a pilot, had been in an F-15 fighter jet that was shot down over a remote area of Iran on Friday.
The pilot had safely ejected and was rescued by two military helicopters the same day, but the second crew member remained missing. According to reports, the missing crew member, who President Trump described as a highly respected colonel, evaded pursuing Iranians for almost two days while Reaper drones overhead protected him from danger.
Armed with only a handgun to protect himself and injured from his ejection from the F-15, the colonel hid from danger before making a daring dash to the rescue site. The complex rescue mission involved hundreds of special forces personnel along with several dozen warplanes and helicopters.
Escalation and Confrontations
A firefight broke out on the ground as Iranian forces closed in on the stricken colonel. As they made the extraction, two of the five rescue planes became stuck in a remote airfield inside Iran and were blown up by special forces to avoid being captured by the enemy.
President Donald Trump touted the operation late Saturday night as “one of the most daring Search and Rescue Operations in US History.” Iranian forces had been deceived after the CIA spread the word that US forces had already found the colonel. The colonel was forced to hide and evade capture for a nerve-racking 36 hours deep inside Iranian territory in harsh terrain.
According to Axios, the colonel had been injured during ejection from the F-15 jet but remained mobile as he hid in the mountains. Following the downing of two US aircraft on Friday, Iran placed a $60,000 bounty on the heads of the US airmen, vowing to seek revenge on US military forces for the conflict.
Aftermath and International Reactions
Before the rescue mission took place, the official X account for the Iranian Embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan, released harrowing new images of the destroyed F-15E jet, accompanied by a taunting caption. The embassy wrote: “The stealth fighter that now has no escape but to lie under the feet of aerospace warriors.” It added, “That same stealth giant, for which they wove legends for years, is today a pile of scrap metal fallen to the ground – this is the very technology they claimed was invisible and untouchable.”
Bombs and weapons were fired from US warplanes to keep Iranian troops away from the stranded colonel. At one point, he reached elevations of around 7,000 feet as he sought to evade capture from Iranian forces. As US forces closed in on the stranded officer, a firefight broke out with Iranian troops.
Three rescue planes flew out of Iran to Kuwait, and the mission was completed just before midnight. President Trump confirmed that the colonel was injured but will be “just fine,” as he celebrated snatching victory from the jaws of defeat. Trump said this was the first time in military history that two US pilots have been rescued, separately, deep in “Enemy Territory,” as he defiantly said that no American warfighter would ever be left behind.
Escalating Tensions
The announcement of the rescue came as Iran launched missiles and drones at Israel and Kuwait early Sunday, a day after Trump said the Islamic Republic had 48 hours to cut a deal or face “all Hell.” The President referred to an ultimatum he issued on March 26, saying: “Remember when I gave Iran ten days to MAKE A DEAL or OPEN UP THE HORMUZ STRAIT, Time is running out – 48 hours before all Hell will reign (sic) down on them.”
Iran’s central military command rejected the ultimatum, with General Ali Abdollahi Aliabadi saying Trump’s threat was a “helpless, nervous, unbalanced and stupid action.” Echoing Trump’s language, he warned that “the gates of hell will open for you.”
Pakistan has offered to mediate efforts to end the war, and according to Iranian media, Pakistan’s foreign minister and his Iranian counterpart spoke by phone on Saturday. However, there was no sign of a let-up in the violence, and Kuwait and Israel said their air defences were responding Sunday to the latest attacks from Iran.
