TEHRAN: President Donald Trump on Sunday said that US forces had safely recovered a second airman downed in Iran, calling it "one of the most daring Search and Rescue Operations in US History".
The announcement came as Iran launched missiles and drones at Israel and Kuwait early Sunday, and a day after Trump said the Islamic republic had 48 hours to cut a deal or face "all Hell".
"This brave Warrior was behind enemy lines in the treacherous mountains of Iran, being hunted down by our enemies," Trump said on Truth Social.
"He sustained injuries, but he will be just fine.
"This miraculous Search and Rescue Operation comes in addition to a successful rescue of another brave Pilot, yesterday, which we did not confirm, because we did not want to jeopardise our second rescue operation."
Iranian media reported five people were killed in strikes during the US rescue operation.
The war, which erupted on February 28 with US-Israeli strikes on Iran, has spread across the Middle East and convulsed the global economy.
Iran has virtually blocked the Strait of Hormuz shipping lane, a vital conduit for oil and gas, and kept up a campaign of strikes on Israel and its Gulf neighbours in reprisal.
US-Israeli attacks in Iran have also hit targets that are key to the Islamic Republic's economy, with a strike on a petrochemical hub in the southwest killing five people on Saturday, according to the deputy governor of Khuzestan province.
"Remember when I gave Iran ten days to MAKE A DEAL or OPEN UP THE HORMUZ STRAIT," Trump wrote Saturday on Truth Social, referring to an ultimatum issued on March 26.
"Time is running out — 48 hours before all Hell will reign (sic) down on them."
Iran's central military command rejected the ultimatum, with General Ali Abdollahi Aliabadi saying Trump's threat was a "helpless, nervous, unbalanced and stupid action".
Echoing Trump's language, he warned that "the gates of hell will open for you".
Pakistan has offered to mediate efforts to end the war, and according to Iranian media, Pakistan's foreign minister and his Iranian counterpart spoke by phone on Saturday.
There was no sign, however, of a let-up in the violence, and Kuwait and Israel said their air defences were responding Sunday to the latest attacks from Iran.
The United Arab Emirates also said its air defences were responding to missile attacks that Tehran said were targeting the country's aluminium industries, while Bahrain officials reported a fire at a refinery "as a result of Iranian aggression".
