Trump says two US airmen rescued in Iran after giving deadline for deal
U.S. President Donald J. Trump pauses after speaking about the Iran war from the Cross Hall of the White House in Washington, DC, USA, April 1. EPA-Yonhap
TEHRAN — President Donald Trump said Sunday that U.S. forces had safely recovered a second airman downed in Iran, calling it "one of the most daring Search and Rescue Operations in U.S. History."
The announcement came as Iran launched missiles and drones at Israel and Kuwait early Sunday, and a day after Trump said the Islamic republic had 48 hours to cut a deal or face "all Hell."
"This brave Warrior was behind enemy lines in the treacherous mountains of Iran, being hunted down by our enemies," Trump said on Truth Social.
"He sustained injuries, but he will be just fine. This miraculous Search and Rescue Operation comes in addition to a successful rescue of another brave Pilot, yesterday, which we did not confirm, because we did not want to jeopardize our second rescue operation."
The war has spread conflict throughout the Middle East and convulsed the global economy. Iran's forces maintain a tight grip on the Strait of Hormuz shipping lane — a vital conduit for oil and gas — and strike economic targets in Gulf neighbours they see as linked to the U.S.-Israeli war effort.
The economic strikes are also going the other way. An Israeli or U.S. strike on a petrochemical hub in the southwest of Iran killed five people Saturday, according to the deputy governor of Khuzestan province.
A rescue worker inspects the debris of destroyed buildings at the site of an Israeli strike in the southern Lebanese area of Maarakeh near the coastal city of Tyre, April 4. AFP-Yonhap
'Time is running out'
"Remember when I gave Iran ten days to MAKE A DEAL or OPEN UP THE HORMUZ STRAIT," Trump wrote Saturday on Truth Social, referring to an ultimatum issued on March 26.
"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."
Kuwait and Israel said their air defences were responding Sunday to the latest attacks from Iran, part of the war that erupted more than a month ago with U.S.-Israeli strikes that triggered retaliation by Tehran.
The United Arab Emirates also said its air defences were responding to missile attacks Tehran said were targeting the country's aluminium industries, while Bahrain officials reported a fire at a refinery "as a result of Iranian aggression."
A satellite image shows a closer view of damage on aircraft shelters at Bushehr airbase, Iran, March 7, following reported airstrikes amid the U.S.-Israeli conflict with Iran. Reuters-Yonhap
Bushehr nuclear plant
A strike near Iran's Bushehr nuclear plant on Saturday killed a guard and led Russia, which partly constructed the facility and helps operate it, to announce it was evacuating 198 workers and to condemn the strike as "an evil deed."
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi warned that continued attacks on the plant on the southern coast could eventually lead to radioactive fallout that would "end life in GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) capitals, not Tehran."
Bushehr is considerably closer to Kuwait, Bahrain and Qatar than it is to the Iranian capital.
Rafael Grossi, head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, (IAEA) wrote on X that no increase in radiation levels had been reported at the site, but nonetheless voiced "deep concern" at what he said was the fourth such strike in recent weeks.
The former director of the watchdog, meanwhile, urged Gulf nations to prevent Trump from turning the region into "a ball of fire" after the U.S. president's latest threat to Tehran.
"To the Gulf governments: Please, once again, do everything in your power before this madman turns the region into a ball of fire," Mohamed El-Baradei, who led the IAEA from 1997 to 2009, wrote on X.
People look at the damage at a factory that got hit by a missile in Petah Tikva, east of Tel Aviv, April 3. AFP-Yonhap
Economic sites hit
Strikes by all sides have increasingly targeted economic and industrial sites, raising fears of wider disruption to global energy supplies.
U.S.-Israeli strikes on Saturday hit a petrochemicals hub, a cement plant and a trade terminal on the Iran-Iraq border, where one person was reported killed.
Iran has retaliated with missile and drone attacks on Israel and U.S. allies in the Gulf.
Shrapnel from intercepted drones injured four people in Bahrain on Saturday, and two buildings in Dubai were hit by debris, including one housing the U.S. cloud computing firm Oracle, authorities said.
On another front, the Israeli military said Friday it had struck more than 3,500 targets across Lebanon in the month since the latest round of fighting with Iran-backed Hezbollah began.
As night fell Saturday, Israel warned it would strike near a border crossing between Syria and Lebanon, ordering residents to evacuate.
In Tel Aviv, hundreds of Israelis marched to protest against the war and demand peace talks.