president Donald Trump Many social media pointed out that he made a mistake in his latest warning to Iran. On Saturday, the 79-year-old said Tehran had 48 hours to reach a deal or face “hell” as U.S. and Iranian forces scrambled to find a downed American pilot.
Trump’s threat came after an attack on Iran’s nuclear power plant and Tehran announcing new attacks in the Middle East. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said it attacked a commercial ship in Bahrain it said was linked to Israel.
follow: Iran War News Live: Explosions heard over Jerusalem amid Iranian missile alert
Trump’s ’48 hours’ warning
“Remember I gave Iran ten days to make a deal or open the Strait of Hormuz,” Trump wrote on The Truth Society. “Time is running out – 48 more hours and hell will befall them.”
In his message, however, the president misspelled rule. He wanted to go in the rain.
Read more: Iran offers a simple solution to Strait of Hormuz blockade: ‘Be polite…’
Iran shoots down an F-15
The day before, Iran said it had shot down an F-15 fighter jet. Multiple U.S. media reported, citing sources, that one of the two people on board had been rescued. The other person remains missing.
The Iranian military also stated that it shot down a US A-10 ground attack aircraft in the Gulf, and US media said the pilot of the aircraft had been rescued.
The search for the missing pilot involved “popular forces and tribal members along with the army and is still ongoing,” the local Meir news agency quoted Fateh Mohammadi, the deputy governor of Kojiluye and Boye-Ahmed provinces, as saying on Saturday.
“Last night, people used rifles to fire at enemy helicopters to prevent them from landing,” he added.
President Trump declined to discuss the ongoing search and rescue efforts in an interview with NBC News. He said the incidents would not affect negotiations with Iran, according to a reporter who spoke to him by phone.
“No, not at all. No, this is war,” Trump reportedly said.
Iran mocks Trump
Meanwhile, Iranian parliament speaker Mohammad Ghalibaf mocked the Trump administration, saying “the war they are waging has now been downgraded from ‘regime change’ to ‘Hey! Can anyone find our pilot?'”
“What an incredible improvement. Absolute genius.”
Second US Air Force plane crashes
A second Air Force plane crashed in the Persian Gulf on Friday, and an A-10 Warthog crashed near the Strait of Hormuz, the New York Times reported, citing U.S. officials. Around the same time, Iran shot down a U.S. F-15E fighter jet. The only pilot was rescued safely.
(With input from AFP)
