- President Donald Trump and his administration have detailed the “incredibly dangerous” mission to rescue a US airman after his F-15 was shot down over Iran on Friday.
- Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said at a Monday news conference, “When he was finally able to activate his emergency transponder, his first message was simple and it was powerful: ‘God is good.’”
- Hegseth went on to say, “Shot down on a Friday, Good Friday. Hidden in a cave, a crevice, all of Saturday. And rescued on Sunday. Flown out of Iran as the sun was rising on Easter Sunday. A pilot reborn. All home and accounted for, a nation rejoicing. God is good.”
- Before Hegseth’s remarks, Trump praised the airman’s heroic actions and said 155 aircraft were involved in the rescue mission, including four bombers, 64 fighters, 48 refueling tankers and 13 rescue aircraft, among others.
- Trump said a deception campaign involving decoys was crucial in the rescue operation to throw off Iranians hunting for the US service member. “We were bringing them all over and a lot of it was subterfuge,” Trump said.
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