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U.S. President Donald Trump threatened to jail the journalist who first reported that U.S. forces were searching for an F-15 weapons officer shot down in Iran if the reporter did not reveal their source, while also saying authorities were trying to identify the leaker and defending the rescue missions that brought U.S. airmen out of Iran.
Speaking to reporters, Trump said the leak had alerted Iran to the status of a second airman stranded in Iran after the first one was rescued, making the rescue effort much more difficult.
He said the person who leaked the information was "a sick person" and said the United States would press the media organization that published the report to identify the source.
Trump said the journalist who first reported that U.S. forces were searching for a downed F-15 weapons officer in Iran would go to jail if the source was not disclosed.
"The person that did the story will go to jail if he doesn't say, and that doesn't last long," Trump said.
He did not name the journalist or the news organization involved.
Trump said the leak tipped off the Iranians and endangered both the officer and those involved in the rescue mission.
He also said U.S. authorities were trying to identify the leaker who told the media that a second airman was stranded in Iran after the first one had been rescued.
"We're looking very hard to find that leaker," Trump said. "We think we'll be able to find it out because we're going to go to the media company that released it and we're going to say: 'National security - give it up or go to jail'."
According to Trump, Iran had not been aware of the second pilot's status before the report was published.
Trump praised the operations that rescued U.S. pilots in Iran and described them as "historic."
"I ordered the American armed forces to do whatever was necessary to bring our brave warriors back home," Trump told reporters.
According to the text, Trump said 21 U.S. military aircraft were deployed as part of that mission.
He also provided details of a second rescue mission in Iran, saying it involved 155 U.S. aircraft.
Trump said the second operation included four bombers, 64 fighter jets, 48 refueling tankers and 13 rescue aircraft.
His remarks combined praise for the rescue operations with a sharp warning over the leak, as he said the disclosure had complicated the mission and that authorities would seek to force the media outlet involved to reveal the source.
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