Trump details daring 155-aircraft rescue of downed bloodied airman while vowing to jail ‘leaker’ who almost blew up rescue plan: ‘God was watching’

President Donald Trump revealed startling new details Monday about the successful rescue operation to find the downed American airman who was left injured in Iran for nearly 48 hours.

“Thus, in a breathtaking display of skill and precision, lethality and power, the American military descended on the area… engaged the enemy, rescued the trapped officer, destroyed all threats, and exited Iran with no casualties,” the president said, flanked by senior officials.

At a press conference in the White House briefing room, the President described an all-hands-on-deck operation that used 155 aircraft, including 64 fighter jets, 48 ​​refueling tankers, 13 rescue planes “and more.”

The search was on for a weapons systems officer who went missing after his F-15E crashed on Good Friday.

The pilot had previously been rescued on the day of the accident.

“He climbed the cliff, was bleeding profusely, contacted his platoon, treated his own wounds, and contacted American forces,” Trump said of the WSO who was rescued on Easter Sunday.

‘God was watching us,’ the President said. ‘We were in the Easter zone,’ he said.

The president said more aircraft were brought in than were needed to complete the mission.

‘We blew up old planes,’ he explained. ‘We tore them to pieces.’

Trump warned that the entire country of Iran could be ‘removed’ overnight, adding that this could happen as soon as Tuesday.

The president noted how the weapons systems officer was able to activate a ‘pager’ that told US forces where to look for him, thus saving the life of the airman and possibly the soldier. “It was like looking for a needle in a haystack,” Trump said.

The downed airman first contacted his US counterparts via radio: Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said “God is good” and added “we leave no one behind.”

Chief of Staff General Dan Caine said the plane’s call sign was ‘Dude 44’ and that several aircraft were sent within hours to rescue the pilot.

Caine on Friday celebrated the pilot’s speedy recovery and the tremendous planning that went into saving the WSO.

Caine noted that the special operations force struggled to rescue the WSO, which crashed early Sunday morning, even into the early hours of the morning.

“We will always bring overwhelming skill and firepower,” the Chief of Staff added.

When Trump was asked how many soldiers were involved in the mission, Caine interjected: ‘I’d like to keep that a secret.’

‘Okay, okay… but I’ll tell you the number. I will keep this a secret. But there were hundreds of these people,’ the President responded.

The press filled the room with bated breath to hear from the President about the operation.

At the beginning of the briefing, Trump scolded an anonymous media outlet that tipped off the Iranians to a target they could pursue for reporting that a pilot had survived the crash.

‘We have to find the leaker because he is a sick person. He probably didn’t realize how bad it was. ‘I can’t imagine that person doing that, but we’ll find out.’

“This is a matter of national security, and the person who made the news will go to jail if they don’t, and that won’t last long,” the president added.

The White House did not immediately respond to the Daily Mail’s request to identify the named reporter.

Later at the briefing, Trump berated a New York Times reporter, calling it a “failure” and saying the paper had “no credibility.”

Trump also threatened on Tuesday to turn Iran into hell if Iran does not reach a deal with the United States to prevent further destruction.

“The entire country could be destroyed in one night, and that night could also happen tomorrow night,” the president said, further reinforcing his previous threat that he would target Iran’s infrastructure.

When asked whether the war was over or escalating (scenarios that Trump also liked), the President gave a revealing answer.

‘I don’t know. I don’t know. “It depends on what they do,” he replied.

The President was then asked whether Iran should make a deal to meet the deadline, or open the Strait or Hormuz, or both.

“We must reach an agreement that is acceptable to me,” he said. ‘And part of this deal will be: We want free traffic of oil and everything.’

This is breaking news and will continue to be updated.