US President Donald Trump reveals that some of his military advisers were not supportive of his decision to launch an operation to rescue two American airmen who were shot down in Iran over the weekend due to the risk it would pose to those taking part.
“Not everybody was on board,” Trump tells reporters during a White House press conference. “There [were] military people — very professional — [who] preferred not doing it.”
He clarifies that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Dan Caine were not among those skeptics.
“Somebody said, ‘This was the only time it’s ever been done,'” Trump claims. “Look at some of the helicopters, how they got hit.”
He asks Caine how many soldiers took part in the rescue, but the Joint Chiefs chairman responds, “I’d love to keep that a secret.”
“I’ll keep it a secret, but it was hundreds,” Trump says.
“I was told that this is a very dangerous mission. They didn’t say it’s a foolish mission,” he clarified.
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Monday, April 6, 2026
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