Iranian Rescue Mission Underscores Hegseth’s Predecessors’ Incompetence:
An American airman found himself stuck behind enemy lines on Saturday in the “treacherous mountains of Iran,” after his aircraft was shot down and Iranian forces were closing in, according to the president. But in a daring rescue mission, the CIA managed to pick up his distress signal and fed false information through multiple channels to confuse the enemy, Fox News reported. In the meantime, MQ9 Reaper drones established a secure perimeter and U.S. forces were able to rescue him.
In a Truth Social post, President Donald Trump said the airman “was never truly alone because his Commander in Chief, Secretary of War, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and fellow Warfighters were monitoring his location 24 hours a day, and diligently planning for his rescue.”
Americans can and will continue to debate the war in Iran. But what is not debatable is the competence on display of our military and its leaders during Saturday’s rescue mission. This rescue mission stands as a stark indictment of the generation of top brass who preceded it — the same admirals and generals who spent decades losing wars and abandoning Americans in times of need — all the while retaining their Washington, D.C. accolades.
On September 11, 2012, Islamist militants attacked the US embassy in Benghazi. The attack lasted hours, during which Ambassador Christopher Stevens, Sean Smith, Tyrone Woods, and Glen Doherty were killed. Investigations from the House Select Committee on Benghazi found that the U.S. military response was slow and inadequate. Available special operations and air forces were not deployed with anything remotely suggesting urgency, and there was poor coordination between the Pentagon, State Department, and intelligence community.
Despite the deadly eight-hour attack that claimed four American lives and the House’s investigative report documenting a slow and unprepared military, none of the Pentagon’s highest ranked officers were relieved of command as punishment. --->READ MORE HERE
Inside the daring rescue of airman behind enemy lines: How CIA assisted with 'deception campaign':
Iranian military was closing in as the overnight operation found the F-15 crew member roughly 48 hours after ejection
The daring U.S. military rescue of a seriously wounded airman is being hailed as an American success story, as President Donald Trump announced "we got him!" and detailed the "AMAZING show of bravery and talent," turning a potential American setback into a show of might.
Details about the rescue are trickling in, including senior administration officials telling Fox News how the CIA deflected enemy attention with a "deception campaign."
The CIA spread word in Iran through multiple sources that U.S. forces had already found the second of two airmen who ejected from their F-15, and were moving him out of Iran in a maritime exfiltration elsewhere, sources told Fox News, but that was designed to buy time to find the stranded weapons system officer.
The CIA picked up a distress signal, passing the intelligence on to the Pentagon and White House, which ordered the immediate rescue mission, according to sources.
There was initial fear the "beacon signal" was an Iranian "trap," sources said.
"There was a lot at stake here," the source said.
Once the CIA confirmed Saturday morning that this was not a trap, the missing airman was located using advanced technical capabilities.
CIA Director John Ratcliffe informed Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs Gen. Dan "Raizin'" Caine and, ultimately, Trump.
"Within eight hours, we had planes in motion," the source said. "Within almost 12 hours we were on the ground in Iran.
"We've seen before what they do with prisoners. We were going to expend every effort to make sure we got to him first."
The U.S. used MQ9 Reaper drones to protect the area around where the airman was hiding and fired on anything that came close to that area and any area where U.S. forces were operating to prevent crowds or any Iranians from approaching, sources confirmed to Fox News.
"We executed multiple large-scale strikes in the surrounding area using every tactical jet in the U.S. inventory and B-1 Bombers to keep him safe," according to a senior U.S. official.
Trump saluted the complex operation to exfiltrate the "highly respected colonel."
"We have rescued the seriously wounded, and really brave, F-15 Crew Member/Officer, from deep inside the mountains of Iran," Trump wrote Sunday morning on Truth Social, announcing an Oval Office news conference set for 1 p.m. ET Monday. "The Iranian Military was looking hard, in big numbers, and getting close." --->READ MORE HERE
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