Sky News issued a breaking news alert as US President Donald Trump announced that the missing US pilot has been found alive and well. One pilot was found after Iran shot down a fighter jet, but the second remained missing for several days. The US quickly commenced a search-and-rescue operation while Iran also offered a reward for anyone who handed in the “enemy pilot”.
Trump announced the rescue in a social media post early on Sunday, and said: “This brave Warrior was behind enemy lines in the treacherous mountains of Iran, being hunted down by our enemies, who were getting closer and closer by the hour.”
Trump said that the pilot is injured but “will be just fine,” adding that the US had been monitoring his location for “24 hours a day, and diligently planning for his rescue.”
Discussing the news, former senior Biden adviser Negah Angha told Sky News presenter Matt Barbet: “Look, it is very good news. We did avert a casualty in enemy territory. We avoided a US member being captured by the enemy becoming a prisoner of war.
“And most definitely, they would have been paraded around for propaganda purposes by the Iranians. And so recovering U.S. service members in this case, behind enemy lines is a moral imperative by the United States, and it’s a tactical success.
“So just to lay that out. But it’s not necessarily a turning point in the war’s outcome and strategic direction, because if anything, I feel like this is more like a warning label.
“The US has, up until now, shown US air superiority dominance. But in this case, Iran was able to show that it could take down a US aircraft.
“So that was quite a puncture into that thought process. Obviously, the rescue overnight on Easter Sunday closes off a propaganda nightmare that we would have endured by the Iranians, but also it was important for the MAGA base, who is quite concerned about U.S. presence in this conflict and the continuity of this conflict.
“So, again, U.S. service members being rescued is quite important.”
