The CIA has received a lot of backlash for past actions, but it should be credited for its recent actions. CIA Director John Ratcliffe revealed that the CIA assisted U.S. Special Forces in the rescue mission of a stranded U.S. F-16E crew member in Iran. Ratcliffe stated that the agency used high-tech technology and deception methods to throw off Iran as they searched to find the American airman before U.S. forces did. Ratcliffe noted the Iranians were “embarrassed” and “humiliated”: CIA Director John Ratcliffe: The Iranians were embarrassed and ultimately humiliated by the success of this rescue mission. pic.twitter.com/vsME3mejI9 — Clash Report (@clashreport) April 6, 2026 NBC Philadelphia reported more on the CIA’s role in the rescue mission: CIA Director John Ratcliffe said that the CIA deployed “both human assets and exquisite technologies” to find the second U.S. service member rescued in Iran, which he likened to “hunting for a single grain of sand in the middle of a desert.” Ratcliffe confirmed that the CIA embarked in a deception campaign to confuse Iranians who were looking for the service member. Earlier in his remarks, he also emphasized the “the unique tradition of the U.S. armed forces that we leave no man or woman behind.” “This was a no fail mission,” he said. “That was the spirit in which the president put us to work, and we were determined not to let him down, or our airman down.” Later, Ratcliffe praised the president’s work. “I know that the confidence of CIA’s officers is boosted by the knowledge that their work is informing a president who’s not afraid to make the hardest decisions when the stakes are highest,” he said. Trump has repeatedly emphasized that rescue operations are highly risky to the military service members involved in the missions and are often not undertaken for that reason, but that he did not hesitate to give the go-ahead to find the missing airman. Watch the CIA director John Ratcliffe explain the mission here: In the White House press briefing room, CIA director John Ratcliffe gave an update on the high stakes rescue mission for two U.S. airmen in Iran.https://t.co/qc2jYdlWlP pic.twitter.com/ygamtE534n — ABC News (@ABC) April 6, 2026 Fox News provided further details on the rescue mission: In a scene that unfolded like a Hollywood script, hundreds of American troops descended into the rugged mountains of southwestern Iran Saturday to rescue a wounded airman who spent nearly two days hiding from Iranian forces. What followed was a high-stakes combat search-and-rescue mission deep inside Iran, with U.S. forces racing to locate and extract the wounded officer before Iranian troops could reach him, deploying a large contingent of special operations forces and aircraft into hostile territory. CIA Director John Ratcliffe compared the mission to find the downed airmen to finding “a grain of sand in the desert” in a news briefing Monday. In total, the U.S. sent in more than 150 aircraft, President Donald Trump said Monday, which took on “very, very heavy enemy fire” during the rescue operation. Several different teams also took part: Navy SEALs, Air Force Special Operations, Army Special Operations Aviation, search and rescue and combat medics. “This was an incredibly dangerous mission, an incredibly dangerous undertaking,” Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the joint chiefs of staff, said Monday at the White House press briefing. One of the two crew members was flown to Landstuhl regional medical center in Germany, typically the first stop for U.S. soldiers wounded in combat zones, and the other is being flown there Monday, a senior U.S. defense official told Fox News. As the rescue unfolded Easter Sunday, the pilot radioed a brief message to help U.S. forces identify him: “God is good,” officials said.