Iran launches hunt for missing American plane personnel, promises incentive for their apprehension

Iran has initiated a search for the US crew of a jet that Iranian media reported was shot down by the country's air defence systems on Friday, with troops being deployed and a bounty being offered.

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According to US media, US special forces have rescued one of the two crew members, while a local official television station in southwestern Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad province has aired footage of what it claims is wreckage of the downed plane.

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The ongoing conflict, which began over a month ago with US-Israeli strikes on Iran that killed supreme leader Ali Khamenei, has sparked a retaliation that has spread throughout the Middle East, affecting the global economy and impacting millions of people worldwide.

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US Central Command (CENTCOM), responsible for military operations in the Middle East, has not responded to a request for comment on what would be the first known loss of a jet inside Iran since the war was ordered by Trump.

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An Iranian television reporter has announced that residents of Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad province who capture the enemy pilot or pilots alive and hand them over to the authorities will receive a valuable reward and bonus.

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A report of the downed jet has emerged as fresh strikes have hit Israel, Iran, Lebanon, and Gulf countries, with large blasts also rocking northern Tehran, according to an AFP journalist.

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Israel has confirmed that it launched a wave of strikes in the Iranian capital, alongside parallel attacks in Beirut.

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Earlier, Israel's military reported a new missile salvo from Iran, prompting the activation of its air defences, as strikes by all sides increasingly target economic and industrial sites, raising fears of wider disruption to global energy supplies.

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Trump has stated on his Truth Social platform that the US military "hasn't even started destroying what's left in Iran", threatening to target bridges and electric power plants, after US strikes damaged Iran's tallest bridge.

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In the area around the bridge, in Karaj, west of Tehran, an AFP reporter observed a villa and residential buildings with blown-out windows, but no military installations, following an attack that killed eight civilians and wounded 95 others, according to the deputy governor of Alborz province.

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Israel has claimed that about 70 percent of Iran's steel production capacity has been taken out, while Emirates Global Aluminium in Abu Dhabi has said it may take up to a year to resume full production after its site was damaged by Iranian strikes.

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Iran's former foreign minister, Mohammad Javad Zarif, has suggested that Tehran should make a deal with the US to end the war by offering to curb its nuclear programme and reopen the Strait of Hormuz in exchange for sanctions relief.

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Iran has virtually blocked the key waterway since the war began, through which one-fifth of the world's oil and natural gas passes in peacetime, with most ships that have managed to cross having links to Iran, according to an AFP analysis of maritime data.

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The Maltese-flagged Kribi, belonging to the French maritime transport group CMA CGM, has become the first major European shipping group to cross the strait since March 1, according to Marine Traffic data analysed by AFP.

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Three other ships, including one co-owned by a Japanese company, also crossed the strait on Thursday, as commodities carriers see a 94 percent drop in traffic compared to peacetime, according to data from business analysts Kpler.

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Iranian military spokesperson Ebrahim Zolfaghari has warned that Iran will increase its attacks on energy sites in the region in response to Trump's threats to attack infrastructure.

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A drone attack on a refinery owned by Kuwait's national oil company has sparked fires at several of its units, according to state media, while an Iranian attack has damaged a power and desalination complex, Kuwait's water and electricity ministry has said.

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In Abu Dhabi, a gas complex has shut down after a fire broke out following an attack that resulted in "falling debris" upon interception, the government media office has said.

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The Israeli military has reported that it has struck over 3,500 targets across Lebanon in the month since fighting with Iran-backed Hezbollah militant group began.

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Israel has announced that it will attack two bridges in Lebanon's eastern Bekaa region to prevent the transfer of reinforcements and military equipment.

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Lebanon's health ministry has reported that 1,345 people have been killed and 4,040 wounded since the start of the war, including 53 healthcare workers.

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The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon has said that a blast wounded three peacekeepers, the third such incident in a week, with the origin of the explosion unknown.

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The war's economic impact is being felt far beyond the Middle East, with energy and oil costs surging, and protests erupting in cities such as Lahore, Pakistan, over fuel price hikes.

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Naveed Ahmed, a 39-year-old protester in Lahore, has expressed his frustration, saying "the government, overnight, has dropped a 'petrol bomb' on its people".

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The White House has sent a spending proposal to lawmakers calling for a massive hike to the US defence budget, with a $1.5 billion budget request representing a 42 percent hike, the largest year-on-year increase in Pentagon spending since World War II.