Previously, Trump had committed to enforcing a Tuesday night ultimatum for Iran to accept a ceasefire deal or suffer extensive attacks on power stations and other vital infrastructure.
“The whole country can be incapacitated in one night, and that night might be tomorrow night,” he asserted during a press conference at the White House.
US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth indicated at the briefing that the most extensive strikes since the operation against Iran began would occur on Monday, cautioning that Tuesday would witness even more activity.Trump, alongside senior national security advisers, elaborated on the operation to rescue a downed American airman from Iranian territory over the weekend.He mentioned that the unidentified airman was taking refuge in the mountains and kept ascending to increase the chances of being found. “It was like searching for a needle in a haystack,” Trump noted.
Hundreds of American personnel participated in the search and recovery mission to prevent the Iranians from locating him first, according to him.CIA Director John Ratcliffe, present at the event, revealed that the agency had executed a “deception campaign” to mislead the Iranians about the airman’s whereabouts.
Ratcliffe stated that on Saturday morning, the CIA confirmed that “one of America’s best and bravest was alive and hidden in a mountain crevice, undetectable to the enemy, but not to the CIA.”
Also read: West Asia War: Trump’s ultimatums to Iran raise doubts over genuine peace intent, say experts
The pilot, who was shot down on Friday, was successfully recovered on Sunday morning.In a remarkable display of skill, precision, lethality, and force, Trump’s military forces operated in the actual area, engaged the enemy, rescued the stranded officer, eliminated all threats, and departed Iranian territory without sustaining any casualties,” Trump declared.
Hegseth mentioned that the downed airman utilized an emergency transponder to indicate his location, and his initial message was: “God is good.”
