Middle East crisis Iran war

American pilot rescued by special forces in Iran: “We have him”

The American pilot who was shot down over Iran on Friday and has been missing since then has been rescued, President Donald Trump confirms in a post on Truth Social. The information was first reported by Axios, citing sources. According to the site, the operation was carried out by American special forces.

“We have him!” Trump writes in capital letters in his post.

He goes on to call the operation “one of the most daring search and rescue operations in American history”. According to Trump, the pilot is injured, but will be fine.

Both Iran and the United States are said to have searched intensively for the pilot. Iran claims that an American tanker plane was shot down, but this has not been confirmed by the United States.

According to Axios sources, the pilot has now left Iran. An American Blackhawk helicopter was reportedly damaged during the operation, which was followed by Trump in real time.

A first crew member from the same plane was already found on Saturday.

Expert: A lot could have gone wrong in the operation

There are a long list of things that could have gone wrong when American special forces rescued the missing pilot who was shot down over Iran. This is what Cedric Leighton, a former American colonel in the US Air Force, tells CNN.

First, the terrain in Iran is challenging and difficult to navigate. In addition, there is always the risk of being discovered by Iranian police or security forces.

– These are the kinds of things, both small and large, that can go wrong. And when they do go wrong, it can have catastrophic consequences for the mission, he says.

There are few details about the operation. President Donald Trump is praising it as “the most daring” in the country’s history and says that the US used several aircraft in the operation. Iran claims to have shot down several US aircraft and helicopters that were taking part in the operation. The US has not commented.

Government building and power plant in Kuwait damaged

Two power plants and desalination plants in Kuwait have been damaged in an Iranian drone attack, the country's Ministry of Electricity and Water reported, according to AFP. The attack caused extensive material damage and stopped two electricity production units, but no people were injured.

According to TT, the attack occurred on the night of Easter Sunday, just hours after a government building in Kuwait City was hit by another drone. Kuwait's military said its air defenses were working to repel missiles and drones on Sunday.

Bloomberg reports that the headquarters of the oil company Kuwait Petroleum Corp was also damaged in a separate drone attack. Israel has also been attacked by Iran overnight, the country's military said. At the same time, Iran states that three people have been killed in new Israeli-American attacks, writes AFP.