Iran's Suspicion of Uranium Theft Behind US Pilot Rescue Mission

Iran is suspicious of the United States’ mission to rescue an American fighter jet pilot who crashed after being shot down in its territory. Iran accuses the rescue mission of being a US effort to steal uranium. Summarised by detikcom on Tuesday (7/4/2026), US President Donald Trump claimed that his forces successfully rescued the missing US fighter jet pilot after Iran shot him down on Friday (3/4). At that time, Iran shot down two US fighter jets, three drones, and two cruise missiles. The US then deployed aeroplanes and helicopters in the operation to rescue the pilot from the downed fighter jet. Iran subsequently claimed to have shot down two US aeroplanes and helicopters deployed in the rescue operation. Following that, Trump deployed US Navy SEAL commando forces. However, Iran suspects that the deployment of US military forces and equipment to rescue the pilot is merely a cover for stealing uranium. In its statement, the Iranian military described the US mission as a “deceptive and escape mission” and insisted that the operation had been “completely foiled”. Quoted by AFP, Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei stated that there are “many questions and uncertainties” regarding the US military operation in Iranian territory. “The area where the American pilot is claimed to be in Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad Province is very far from the area where they attempted to land or wanted to land their forces in central Iran,” Baghaei said in a statement on Monday (6/4). He stated that the possibility of the US wanting to steal uranium must not be ignored. Baghaei also added that the military operation was a “disaster” for the US. “The possibility that this is a ruse operation to steal enriched uranium must not be ignored at all,” he emphasised. The Iranian military stated that several US military aeroplanes had to make “emergency landings” in southern Isfahan Province after being hit by gunfire during the rescue mission. Iran claims that the US was “forced to bomb the downed aeroplane” as a result. Baghaei stated that two US military transport aeroplanes of the C-130 type and two Black Hawk helicopters had been destroyed by Iran during the rescue mission.