TEL AVIV, Israel
The U.S. military on Saturday searched for a missing pilot shot down over a remote area in Iran, while President Donald Trump remained silent on the incident but reminded Tehran of his Monday deadline to open the Strait of Hormuz: “48 hours before all Hell will reign down on them.”
The U.S. warplane, identified by Iran as a F-15E Strike Eagle, was one of two attacked on Friday, with one service member rescued. Iran has promised a reward for whoever turns in the missing pilot.
It’s the first time the United States lost aircraft in Iranian territory during the war, now in its sixth week, which could further pressure Trump to end the fighting.
Iran’s joint military command on Saturday claimed it also struck two U.S. Black Hawk helicopters the day before, but The Associated Press could not independently verify that.
The war began with joint U.S.-Israel strikes on Feb. 28 and has killed thousands, shaken global markets, cut off key shipping routes and spiked fuel prices. It shows no signs of slowing as Iran responds with attacks across the region.
Trump earlier in the week said in a national address that the U.S. has “beaten and completely decimated Iran.” The U.S. and Israel boasted that Iran’s air defenses were obliterated.
But on Saturday, an apparent Iranian drone damaged the headquarters of U.S. technology company Oracle in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Both sides have threatened, and hit, civilian targets and infrastructure in the war.
The Atomic Energy Organization of Iran said that an airstrike hit near its Bushehr nuclear facility, killing a security guard and damaging a support building.
It’s the fourth time the facility was targeted. The head of Russia’s state nuclear corporation, Rosatom, said that 198 workers were being evacuated.
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