The Latest: US and Iran race to find missing crew member from downed military plane
The search is on for one missing U.S. service member while another was rescued after two U.S. warplanes went down in separate incidents including the first shoot-down since the Iran war began nearly five weeks ago.
The incidents occurred just two days after President Donald Trump said in a national address that the U.S. has “beaten and completely decimated Iran.”
One fighter jet was shot down in Iran, officials said. A U.S. crew member from that plane was rescued, but a second was missing, and a U.S. military search-and-rescue operation was underway.
Separately, Iranian state media said a U.S. A-10 attack aircraft crashed in the Persian Gulf after being struck by Iranian defense forces. A U.S. official, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss a sensitive military situation, said it was not clear if the aircraft crashed or was shot down.
The war now entering its sixth week is destabilizing economies around the world as Iran responds to the U.S. and Israeli attacks by targeting the Gulf region's energy infrastructure and tightening its grip on oil and natural gas shipments through the Strait of Hormuz.
Here is the latest:
Iran’s parliament speaker has made a veiled threat against another crucial waterway in the Middle East. The Bab el-Mandeb strait is at the southern tip of the Arabian Peninsula and sees about a quarter of global container shipping traffic to and from the Suez Canal.
Saudi Arabia has been sending millions of barrels of crude oil a day through the Bab el-Mandeb because of Iran’s grip on the Strait of Hormuz. But concerns have emerged around the Bab el-Mandeb with the recent entry into the war of Iranian-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen. The Houthis previously targeted more than 100 merchant vessels on the Red Sea — between the Bab el-Mandeb and the Suez Canal — because of the war in Gaza. Those attacks stopped after U.S. and Israeli airstrikes.
Now the Houthis, and perhaps Iran itself, could resume attacks. The Houthis have said they won’t allow the U.S. and Israel to use the Red Sea for attacks on Iran.
It said the rescuer was killed in an airstrike Saturday morning in Isfahan Province. It’s the fourth aid worker to die in the war.
It wasn’t immediately clear whether the aid worker, Abolfazl Dehnavi, was on duty.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan spoke with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte over the phone Saturday where they discussed regional and global issues as well as alliance matters.
According to state-run Anadolu Agency, Erdogan told Rutte the situation in Iran was “heading toward a geostrategic deadlock” and urged the international community to step up efforts to end the war.
Erdogan added that he hoped the NATO summit in Ankara on July 7-8 will adopt decisions to make the alliance more resilient and effective against future changes.
The sale comes after the Trump administration eased sanctions on Iran’s oil.
“Indian refiners have secured their crude oil requirements, including from Iran; and there is no payment hurdle for Iranian crude imports,” the Indian Foreign Ministry said Saturday.
Last month, the U.S. paused sanctions on Iranian oil stranded on tankers at sea until April 19. The move was part of Washington’s efforts to curb soaring energy prices as a result of the war in the Middle East.
As sirens rang out again in large parts of Israel on Saturday afternoon, the country’s Fire and Rescue services said their teams were treating impact sites from an earlier attack in Ramat Gan, Givata’im, Bnei Brak, and Petah Tikvah. All are cities in central Israel that have already sustained damage in previous Iranian attacks.
Israel’s Magen David Adom rescue service said a 52 year-old man was taken to hospital with light injuries.
Images released by rescue services show an apartment building with blown out walls and windows. Mangled metal, bricks and debris were strewn across the scene. At another site, a tall plume of black smoke rose from a burning car that was hit by fragments of a missile or an interceptor. Lior Paz, a paramedic, said he arrived at the scene within minutes “and saw destruction, fire, shattered glass on the floor and a lot of smoke.”
Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson says his government’s efforts to broker a ceasefire are “right on track.”
Tahir Andrabi made the comments to The Associated Press after reports suggesting a deadlock in the mediation efforts.
His comments came about a week after Pakistan hosted senior diplomats from Turkey, Egypt and Saudi Arabia and reiterated its readiness to facilitate talks between Washington and Tehran.
Earlier Saturday, Iran’s foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, said his government has “never refused to go to Islamabad,” but is seeking a “conclusive and lasting” end to the conflict.
Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar welcomed the statement, writing on X: “Truly appreciate your clarification, my dear brother @Araghchi.”
U.S. President Donald Trump did not equivocate in his first live address to Americans about the war in Iran.
“We’ve beaten and completely decimated Iran,” he said in a prime-time speech from the White House on Wednesday. “They are decimated both militarily and economically and in every other way.”
He added: “Their radar is 100% annihilated. We are unstoppable as a military force.”
His certitude is now colliding with the uncertainty of war.
The American fighter jet that was shot down in Iran on Friday was a searing reminder of the dangers associated with war, prompting a search operation that resulted in the rescue of one crew member. Another U.S. aircraft was hit by Iranian air defenses, Iranian state media reported, days after Trump said Iran had “no anti-aircraft equipment.”
For the Republican president, who didn’t appear in public Friday, the developments were the latest example of his triumphal characterization of the war appearing misplaced.
The remains of three Indonesian United Nations peacekeepers, who were killed while on escort duty supporting U.N. operations in southern Lebanon, arrived in Jakarta on Saturday evening, where President Prabowo Subianto led a solemn welcome ceremony.
The caskets were received at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport’s VIP terminal, draped in Indonesia’s red-and-white national flag, as military honor guards stood at attention.
Devastated families leaned against the caskets. Wives rested their foreheads on the flags covering the caskets, their sobs breaking the silence of the military honors.
Prabowo, accompanied by senior government officials and top military commanders, bowed his head and observed a moment of silence. He offered condolences to the families before the caskets were returned to their hometowns for official military funerals.
Jakarta has condemned the Israeli attacks in southern Lebanon that killed the peacekeepers as the border area became another flashpoint in Israel’s war.
Iran’s government is detaining family members and threatening to seize property of Iranian opposition figures in exile, some tell The Associated Press, in the latest crackdown on dissenting voices as the war rages on.
Activists overseas play a key role in tracking the crackdown, which is complicated by the internet shutdown imposed earlier this year during massive nationwide protests against the Islamic theocracy. Watchdogs say security forces shot and killed thousands of people.
The war with the United States and Israel has intensified authorities’ threats against anyone speaking to outside media or activists. Now that pressure appears to be expanding to intimidate activists in exile.
Mediators from Pakistan, Turkey and Egypt are still working to bring the United States and Iran back to the negotiating table, according to two regional officials.
The regional powers are working on a compromise to bridge the gap between the American and Iranian demands to stop the war and reopen the crucial Strait of Hormuz, they said.
They said the yet-to-be finalized compromise aims at paving the way for both sides to meet in Pakistan.
It includes a cessation of hostilities for a certain period of time to allow a diplomatic settlement, according to a regional official involved in the efforts and a Gulf diplomat briefed on the matter. They spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss closed-door diplomacy.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Saturday reiterated his government’s willingness to restart talks in Pakistan, but said they seek a “conclusive and lasting” end of the conflict.
Araghchi said he spoke by phone Friday with Turkey’s foreign minister to discuss the latest developments.
— Samy Magdy
Meloni assured Qatar’s leader during a visit Saturday that Italy would contribute to restoring Qatari energy infrastructure damaged by Iranian bombing, noting its natural gas production is critical to global energy security, her office said in a note.
Meloni is the first EU, G20 and NATO leader to visit the Gulf region since the start of the U.S.-Israel war on Iran. She began her two-day visit Friday in Saudi Arabia and is also scheduled to visit the United Arab Emirates. The start of the visit was unannounced due to security concerns.
Meloni and Qatar’s emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani, also reaffirmed the necessity of opening the Strait of Hormuz, which has blocked for weeks by the conflict, stranding numerous oil tankers.
Austrian Foreign Minister Beate Meinl-Reisinger said she underscored to her Iranian counterpart Abbas Aragchi “the need to halt the strikes on neighboring countries and restore freedom of navigation in the Strait Hormuz.”
Meinl-Reisinger said in a social media post on Saturday that navigation through the Gulf was especially important “regarding the humanitarian aspect of glob food security with a focus on fertilizers and other essential goods.”
She added her country’s support for forging a new deal on Iran’s nuclear program and restoring the country’s full cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency.
The United Arab Emirates said Saturday its air defense systems engaged 23 ballistic missiles and 56 drones from Iran.
Azerbaijan's state news agency Azertac reported on Saturday that 10 with 200 tons of food, medicine and medical supplies were trucked over the country's border with Iran.
Azerbaijani officials accompanied the convoy to oversee the delivery of the assistance, the report said.
Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev posted on X that the “friendly and brotherly” people of both countries have supported each other for centuries and "we will continue to stand by each other in both good and difficult times.”
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said in a social media post on Saturday that Iran has "never refused to go to Islamabad.”
He said what Iran cares about "are the terms of a conclusive and lasting END to the illegal war that is imposed on us.”
Pakistan said last week that it would soon host talks between the U.S. and Iran. It is not clear when or if the talks will take place.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi posted on social media on Saturday that radioactive fallout from continued attacks on the Bushehr nuclear power plant “will end life” in regional capitals, not Tehran.
He accused Western governments of remaining silent about the repeated attacks on the plant.
The fourth attack on the Bushehr complex occurred Saturday, killing a security guard and damaging a support building. No increase in radiation levels was reported, according to the International Atomic Energy Agency.
Bushehr is located some 750 kilometers (465 miles) south of Iran’s capital, Tehran.
The facility uses low-enriched uranium from Russia, along with Russian technicians, to supply about 1,000 megawatts of power for Iran.
The finance ministers of Spain, Germany, Italy, Portugal and Italy say that a European Union-wide tax on energy companies’ profits would distribute the burden more fairly.
The call, made public Saturday, comes amid concerns that surging oil and gas prices driven by the Iran war will fuel inflation and strain households.
Europe is largely dependent on imported oil and gas, leaving it vulnerable to external shocks.
In 2022, turmoil in energy markets following Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine pushed inflation into double digits in many European countries.
Omar al-Waeli, head of Iraq’s Border Ports Authority, said on Saturday that the strike on the Shalamcheh border crossing killed one person and wounded five others.
Authorities did not offer further details on the strike. But trade and passenger traffic is suspended at the crossing, which is crucial for Iranian imports and Iranian pilgrims headed to Iraq’s Shiite shrines.
The Iraqi government said it was directing traders and travelers to alternative crossings.
The International Atomic Energy Agency said on Saturday that it has been informed by Iran about the strike near the premises of the Bushehr nuclear facility that killed a security guard and impacted a building in the complex.
“No increase in radiation levels was reported” following the strike, the IAEA said in a social media post.
Bahrain’s Defense Ministry reported the tally in a social media post on Saturday.
This brings the total number of projectiles fired at the country since the start of the war to 188 missiles and 453 drones.
Bahrain hosts the U.S. Navy’s 5th Fleet.
The Atomic Energy Organization of Iran said in a social media post Saturday that an airstrike near its Bushehr nuclear facility killed a security guard and damaged a support building.
It is the fourth time the facility has been targeted during the war.
The Bushehr nuclear power plant uses low-enriched uranium from Russia, along with Russian technicians, to supply about 1,000 megawatts of power for Iran.
Its pressurized-water reactor can power hundreds of thousands of homes and other businesses and industries. But it contributes only 1% to 2% of Iran’s total power needs.
Iran has been trying to expand the facility to multiple reactors. In 2019, it began a project that ultimately plans to add two additional reactors to the site, each adding another 1,000 megawatts apiece.
Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni has discussed with Saudi Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman defensive military assistance that Italy is providing against Iranian reprisals to U.S.-Israeli attacks.
A brief statement from Meloni's office Saturday did not specify what type of assistance Italy is providing.
It also said the two discussed diplomatic efforts to end the war, the importance of opening the Strait of Hormuz and “more broadly how to promote a regional framework that can break free from the current cycle of conflict.”
Meloni will continue her visit in Qatar and the United Arab Emirates.
U.S. and Israeli warplanes continued to pound Iran Saturday, hitting several targets including a petrochemical facility, Iranian media reported.
Iran's official English-language newspaper Tehran Times reported that an airstrike hit a facility belonging to Iran’s Agriculture Ministry in the western city of Mehran.
The newspaper said another air raid struck Mahshahr Special Petrochemical Zone in the southwestern Khuzestan province.
The semiofficial Fars news agency reported several explosions heard late Saturday morning in the facility.
Mehr, another semiofficial news agency, reported that the strikes hit four companies within the zone.
Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf made the veiled threat about the Bab el-Mandeb waterway in a social media post late Friday, asking about how busy oil tanker and container ship traffic is through the strait.
The 20-mile (32-kilometer) strait links the Red Sea with the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean and is one of the busiest chokepoints in global trade, with more than a tenth of seaborne global oil and a quarter of container ships passing through it.
Iran has already greatly disrupted the flow of oil through the Strait of Hormuz, sending fuel prices skyrocketing and jolting the world economy.
Disrupting transit through the Bab el-Mandeb waterway would force shipping firms to route their vessels around the Cape of Good Hope at the southern tip of Africa, further hitting prices.
Israel’s rescue services said Saturday the man sustained glass shrapnel wounds after an Iranian missile hit the central city of Bnei Brak.
It wasn't clear if the glass shrapnel was caused by a direct strike or falling debris from an intercepted missile.
Israel’s Magen David Adom rescue services said it was taking the man to the hospital.
The Iranian judiciary's Mizan news agency said Saturday that the two men who were hanged belonged to the Iranian exile group Mujahedeen-e-Khalq.
The agency said Abul-Hassan Montazer and Vahid Bani-Amirian were convicted of “being members of a terrorist group.”
This brings to six the total number of MEK members executed since the start of the war.
Activists and rights groups say Iran routinely holds closed-door trials in which defendants are unable to challenge the accusations they face.
The Israeli military said on Saturday that its air force struck ballistic and anti-aircraft missile storage sites in Tehran.
It said the strikes a day earlier included weapons manufacture sites as well as military research and development facilities in the Iranian capital.
It said the strikes are part of an ongoing phase to increase damage to Iran's “core systems and foundations.”
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