Israel assisted spectacular rescue of US airman by providing intel, coordinating airstrikes to prevent Iranian capture

Israel was deeply involved in the extraordinary operation to rescue the downed U.S. weapons officer from Iran, Fox News reported on Sunday. 

According to the report, Israel shared relevant intelligence with U.S. intelligence agencies to help locate the officer. At the same time, Israel coordinated its airstrikes with the U.S. military both to avoid harm to the downed officer and to help prevent Iranian regime forces from approaching his location. 

Former Pentagon official and retired Navy Captain Brent Sadler told Fox News that reports indicate intelligence agencies and special forces from multiple military branches were involved in the rescue operation, with support from regional allies.

"Our Gulf partners would have had to have given some clearance for the aircraft to fly through,” Sadler explained. “They wouldn't know what it was for, and, of course, the Israelis, I think they [were] deeply integrated into this, to shift their targets and their attacks so that it would draw the Iranians away or keep them busy as we focused in on locating and exfiltrating our pilot.” 

Sadler’s comments align with Israeli media reports indicating that the IDF participated in the rescue operation, providing not only intelligence support but also coordinating strikes and aerial activity to assist U.S. forces and frustrate Iranian efforts to reach the downed weapons officer.

According to sources who spoke with The Jerusalem Post, the IDF launched a series of strikes strategically designed to draw Iranian regime forces away from the crash site, while other strikes targeted specific Iranian assets to disrupt the regime forces from approaching the crash site.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu hinted at Israel’s role in the rescue in a social media post congratulating the U.S. president.

“I spoke earlier with President Donald Trump and personally congratulated him on his bold decision and a perfectly executed American mission to rescue the downed pilot from enemy territory,” Netanyahu wrote on his personal 𝕏 account. “The President expressed his appreciation for Israel's help. ”

I spoke earlier with President @realDonaldTrump and personally congratulated him on his bold decision and a perfectly executed American mission to rescue the downed pilot from enemy territory.

The President expressed his appreciation for Israel's help.

I am deeply proud that…

— Benjamin Netanyahu - בנימין נתניהו (@netanyahu) April 5, 2026

“I am deeply proud that our cooperation on an[d] off the battlefield is unprecedented, and that Israel could contribute to saving a brave American warrior,” Netanyahu added. 

An Israeli official told The Jerusalem Post, “It was a US rescue mission; they did what many feared might not happen. Israel did what it could and what it was asked to do by the US military in order to help and save lives.”

U.S. media reported that, following the downing of the F-15 over Iran, the CIA began a deliberate deception campaign designed to confuse the regime from knowing the officer’s location, or the details of the ongoing rescue efforts. This campaign aimed to mislead the Islamic Republic's forces by spreading rumors that the crewman had been found and was being transported out of the country by land. 

The colonel managed to stay alive in very rugged mountainous terrain, using professional SERE (Survival, Evasion, Resistance, Escape) training, maintaining radio-silence most of the time and activating his location-tracking device periodically. He allegedly only engaged in direct contact with his rescuers in the final hours of the operation. 

✅️✌️نیروهای آمریکایی با پرواز به منطقه کوههای کهکیلویه و بویراحمد، یک پایگاه سری موقتی در دل خاک ایران احداث کردند و دو فروند هواپیمای C-130 را به زمین نشاندند. آن‌ها مسافتی ۶۰ کیلومتری را تا منطقه کوهستانی ( کوه سیاه دهدشت) دویدند و خلبانی را که به شدت مجروح شده بود نجات… pic.twitter.com/79IN0nBbrJ

— Siamak Tadayon Tahmasbi (@SiamakTadayonT) April 5, 2026

In an interview with Israeli journalist Barak Ravid, Trump said that Israel helped “a little bit” in the rescue operation. The president said the Israelis “have been good partners. They have been great and brave people. We are like a big brother and little brother.” 

Writing for Axios, Ravid quoted unnamed U.S. officials who claimed that Israel’s assistance was with general intelligence on the area where the operation took place, but denied any specific intelligence regarding the weapons officer. 

According to the Fox News report, however, Israel was asked by the U.S. military to assist in ensuring air supremacy in the area of the rescue, and attacked “relevant targets.” Ravid also cited Israeli officials who said the Israeli Air Force conducted strikes to prevent Iranian regime forces from reaching the area. 

According to the sources, Israel refrained from strikes in the area of the downed crewman, while providing the U.S. with specific intelligence. 

Initial reports in Iran International and on social media claimed that Israeli special operations units – Shayetet 13, Sayeret Matkal or Shaldag – were on the ground to assist U.S. troops in the rescue mission.

However, subsequent reports and statements from Israeli officials denied these reports, stressing that the IDF contributed to the miraculous rescue from afar.