Iran leaves door open for peace talks as hunt for missing US pilot continues

Iranian forces were hunting for a missing U.S. pilot on Saturday from one of two warplanes downed over Iran and the Gulf, raising the stakes for Washington as the war entered its sixth week with scant prospect of peace talks in sight.

The incidents show the risks still facing U.S. and Israeli aircraft over Iran , despite assertions by President Donald Trump and his Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth that U.S. forces had total control of the skies.

The prospect of a U.S. service member alive and on the run in Iran comes days after Trump threatened to bomb Iran “back to the Stone Ages” in a war that has killed thousands, sparked an energy crisis and threatened lasting damage to the world economy.

With Iran’s leadership defiant since the start of the war, its foreign minister in principle left the door open for peace talks with the U.S. via mediation from Pakistan, but gave no sign of Tehran’s willingness to bow to Trump’s demands.

“We are deeply grateful to Pakistan for its efforts and have never refused to go to Islamabad. What we care about are the terms of a conclusive and lasting END to the illegal war that is imposed on us,” Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said on X.

Trump on Saturday repeated his threats to intensify attacks on Iran if it failed to reach a deal, or open the key Strait of Hormuz waterway.

“Remember when I gave Iran ten days to MAKE A DEAL or OPEN UP THE HORMUZ STRAIT. Time is running out - 48 hours before all Hell will reign down on them. Glory be to GOD!” he said in a post on Truth Social.

As hostilities continued, Iran attacked an Israel-affiliated vessel with a drone in the Strait of Hormuz, setting the ship on fire, Iran’s state media said on Saturday, citing the commander of the Revolutionary Guards’ navy.

Iran has virtually shut the ​strait, which normally carries about a fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas.

Iranian fire brought down a two-seat U.S. F-15E jet, officials in both countries said, while two U.S. officials said the pilot ejected from an A-10 Warthog fighter aircraft that crashed in Kuwait after being hit by Iranian fire.

Two Black Hawk helicopters engaged in the search for the missing pilot were hit by Iranian fire but made it out of Iranian airspace, the two U.S. officials told Reuters.

The scale of injuries to the crew was unclear.

Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps said it was combing a southwestern area near where the pilot’s plane came down, while the regional governor promised a commendation for anyone who captured or killed “forces of the hostile enemy.”

Iranians, pummelled by air power since the U.S. and Israel began their attacks on February 28, celebrated the plane downings.

The Khatam al-Anbiya joint military command said it used a new air defence system on Friday, which targeted a U.S. fighter jet, three drones and two cruise missiles.

“The enemy should know that we rely on new air defense systems built by the young, knowledgeable, and proud people of this country, unveiling them one after another in the field,” a Khatam al-Anbiya spokesperson said, according to Iran’s state media.

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said they had targeted various areas in Israel in a wave of missiles and drones. They also targeted U.S. HIMARS rocket launcher batteries in Kuwait and Patriot missile batteries in Bahrain, according to a statement read on state TV.

Increasingly frustrated with the political fallout from the war, Trump is considering a broader cabinet shake-up in the wake of Attorney General Pam Bondi’s removal this week, people familiar with the discussions said.

Any potential reshuffling could serve as a reset for the White House as it confronts rising gas prices, falling ratings and worries for Republicans heading into November’s midterm elections.

“They’ve (U.S.) got themselves caught in a sort of double bind. If they simply leave, it’s really bad, and if they try to get the comprehensive defeat of Iran ... that looks really bad as well,” said Gareth Stansfield, a professor of Middle East politics at the UK’s Exeter University and senior fellow at the Atlantic Council.

“They’ve managed to get themselves into a lose-lose situation with this one.”

Iranian state media reported air strikes at a petrochemical zone in southwestern Iran, with five people reported injured so far.

A projectile also hit an auxiliary building near the perimeter of Iran’s Bushehr nuclear plant, the Tasnim news agency said, killing one person. The operations of the plant were unaffected.

Russia’s state nuclear company Rosatom evacuated a further 198 of its staff from the site on Saturday, Russian news agencies reported, in evacuations already planned before the latest incident.

The Israeli military meanwhile said it had carried out “a wave of strikes” on Tehran.

Israel has been waging a parallel campaign against Iran-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon after the militant group fired at Israel in support of Iran. Early on Saturday, Israel’s military said it was striking the militants’ infrastructure sites in Beirut.

周六，伊朗军队正在搜寻一名失踪的美国飞行员，这名飞行员是从两架在伊朗和海湾上空被击落的美国战机之一中失踪的。随着战争进入第六周，和平谈判的前景渺茫，华盛顿面临的风险也随之增加。

这些事件表明，尽管美国总统唐纳德·特朗普和国防部长皮特·赫格塞斯声称美国军队完全控制了伊朗领空，但美国和以色列的飞机在伊朗上空仍然面临风险。

就在特朗普威胁要将伊朗炸回“石器时代”的几天前，一名美国军人可能还活着，并且在伊朗境内逃亡。这场战争已经造成数千人死亡，引发了能源危机，并有可能对世界经济造成持久损害。

自战争开始以来，伊朗领导层一直态度强硬。伊朗外长原则上表示，愿意通过巴基斯坦的斡旋与美国进行和平谈判，但没有表现出德黑兰愿意屈服于特朗普的要求。

“我们深切感谢巴基斯坦所做的努力，也从未拒绝前往伊斯兰堡。我们所关心的是彻底、持久地结束这场强加于我们的非法战争，”外交部长阿巴斯·阿拉格奇在X日表示。

特朗普周六再次威胁称，如果伊朗未能达成协议或开放关键的霍尔木兹海峡水道，他将加大对伊朗的攻击力度。

“还记得我曾给伊朗十天时间达成协议，否则就开放霍尔木兹海峡吗？时间不多了——48小时后，地狱之门将降临到他们头上。荣耀归于上帝！”他在Truth Social网站上发帖说道。

据伊朗国家媒体周六援引革命卫队海军司令的话报道，随着敌对行动的持续，伊朗在霍尔木兹海峡用无人机袭击了一艘与以色列有关联的船只，并放火烧毁了该船。

伊朗实际上已经封锁了霍尔木兹海峡，该海峡通常输送着全球约五分之一的石油和液化天然气。

两国官员均表示，伊朗的炮火击落了一架双座的美国F-15E战斗机；与此同时，两名美国官员表示，一架在科威特坠毁的A-10“疣猪”攻击机被伊朗炮火击中后，飞行员弹射逃生。

两名美国官员告诉路透社，两架参与搜寻失踪飞行员的黑鹰直升机遭到伊朗炮火袭击，但已飞出伊朗领空。

船员受伤情况尚不清楚。

伊朗革命卫队表示，他们正在搜查飞行员飞机坠毁地点附近的西南部地区，而该地区的省长承诺，任何抓获或击毙“敌对势力”的人都将获得嘉奖。

自美国和以色列于 2 月 28 日开始对伊朗进行空袭以来，伊朗一直遭受空袭的打击，他们对飞机被击落表示庆祝。

哈塔姆·安比亚联合军事指挥部称，周五他们使用了一种新的防空系统，该系统击落了一架美国战斗机、三架无人机和两枚巡航导弹。

据伊朗国家媒体报道，哈塔姆·安比亚的一位发言人表示：“敌人应该知道，我们依靠的是由这个国家年轻、博学、自豪的人民建造的新型防空系统，这些系统正在战场上一个接一个地亮相。”

伊朗革命卫队称，他们使用导弹和无人机对以色列多个地区发动了袭击。根据伊朗国家电视台发布的声明，他们还袭击了位于科威特的美国“高磁石”（HIMARS）火箭炮阵地和位于巴林的“爱国者”（Patriot）导弹阵地。

据知情人士透露，特朗普对战争带来的政治后果越来越感到沮丧，在司法部长帕姆·邦迪本周被解职后，他正在考虑对内阁进行更广泛的改组。

任何潜在的人事调整都可能成为白宫的一次重整，因为白宫正面临着汽油价格上涨、支持率下降以及共和党在11月中期选举前所面临的种种担忧。

“他们（美国）让自己陷入了一种两难境地。如果他们就此撤军，情况会非常糟糕；如果他们试图彻底击败伊朗……那看起来也很糟糕，”英国埃克塞特大学中东政治学教授、大西洋理事会高级研究员加雷斯·斯坦斯菲尔德说。

“他们在这件事上让自己陷入了双输的境地。”

伊朗国家媒体报道称，伊朗西南部一处石化区遭到空袭，目前已造成五人受伤。

塔斯尼姆通讯社报道称，一枚炮弹还击中了伊朗布什尔核电站附近的一座辅助建筑，造成一人死亡。该核电站的运行未受影响。

据俄罗斯新闻机构报道，俄罗斯国家原子能公司（Rosatom）周六从该厂址撤离了另外 198 名员工，这些撤离行动在最新事故发生前就已经计划好了。

与此同时，以色列军方表示，已对德黑兰发动了“一系列空袭”。

在黎巴嫩真主党武装组织向以色列开火以声援伊朗后，以色列也对伊朗支持的真主党在黎巴嫩境内发动了类似的军事行动。周六清晨，以色列军方宣布对真主党在贝鲁特的设施目标进行打击。