A US Air Force officer whose fighter jet was downed over Iran has been rescued in a high-risk night operation deep inside hostile territory, even as conflicting accounts emerged over losses suffered during the mission.
US President Donald Trump hailed the operation as a success, declaring there was "no loss of life", but officials acknowledged that American forces destroyed their own aircraft while retreating to prevent sensitive equipment from falling into Iranian hands.
According to a US official cited by The Wall Street Journal, two MC-130J special operations aircraft used for covert insertion and extraction became immobilised during the mission. "It became necessary to destroy the two planes," the official said.
Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf mocked the US, posting images of the wreckage and writing: "If the United States gets three more victories like this, it will be utterly ruined."
The rescued officer was the second crew member of an F-15E fighter jet reportedly shot down by Iranian air defences. Trump said the military "sent dozens of aircraft, armed with the most lethal weapons" and announced the success with a post: "WE GOT HIM!"
He added the officer, identified as a colonel, was injured but "will be just fine".
Meanwhile, Iran's Revolutionary Guard claimed multiple US aircraft were destroyed, including a C-130 and two helicopters, potentially pushing total US losses in the conflict into double digits.