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US aviator missing after Iran shot down fighter jet rescued

A US service member who has been missing since Iran shot down a fighter jet has been rescued, President Donald Trump has announced.

A frantic US search-and-rescue operation unfolded after the crash of the F-15E Strike Eaglejet on Friday, as Iran also promised a reward for anyone who turned in the “enemy pilot".

"This brave Warrior was behind enemy lines in the treacherous mountains of Iran, being hunted down by our enemies, who were getting closer and closer by the hour,” Trump wrote on his social media platform, Truth Social.

READ MORE: Iran's chilling threat that could further derail global economy

Donald Trump vowed to bomb Iran back to the Stone Age.

A second crew member was rescued earlier.

Trump said that the aviator is injured but “will be just fine”, adding that the rescue involved “dozens of aircraft” and that the US had been monitoring his location “24 hours a day, and diligently planning for his rescue".

The fighter jet was the first US aircraft to have crashed in Iranian territory since the conflict in late February.

Trump said last week that the US had “decimated” Iran and would finish the war “very fast”. Two days later, Iran shot down two US military planes, showing the ongoing perils of the bombing campaign and the ability of a degraded Iranian military to continue to hit back.

An F-15E like this one has been shot down over Iran.

Drones hit Gulf energy infrastructure

In Kuwait, an Iranian drone attack caused significant damage to two power plants and put a water desalination station out of service, according to the Ministry of Electricity.

No injuries were reported from the attack, the ministry said.

In Bahrain, the national oil company said that a drone attack caused a fire at one of its storage facilities, which was extinguished.

US President Donald Trump lauded the rescue operation in a post on his Truth Social site.

It said the damage was still being assessed and no injuries had been reported.

The war began with joint US-Israel strikes on February 28 and has killed thousands, shaken global markets, cut off key shipping routes and spiked fuel prices.

Both sides have threatened, and hit, civilian targets, bringing warnings of possible war crimes.

The other jet to go down was a US A-10 attack aircraft. Neither the status of the crew nor exactly where it crashed was immediately known.

Trump renews threat

Trump renewed his threats for Iran to open up the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial waterway for global energy shipments that has been choked off by Tehran, by Monday or face devastating consequences, writing on Saturday (Sunday AEDT) in a social media post: “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.”

“The doors of hell will be opened to you” if Iran’s infrastructure is attacked, General Ali Abdollahi Aliabadi with the country’s joint military command said in response to Trump’s renewed threat, state media reported.

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The US Central Command has released a video of what appears to be its military operations targeting Iran.
The footage shows munitions exploding against a black and white backdrop.

"US forces drop precision munitions on underground military targets deep inside Iran to further degrade the Iranian regime's ability to project power in meaningful ways beyond its borders," the government organisation said in a post on X.

In turn, the general threatened all infrastructure used by the US military in the region.

But Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Tahir Andrabi, told The Associated Press that his government’s efforts to broker a ceasefire are “right on track” after Islamabad last week said that it would soon host talks between the US and Iran.

Iran’s foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, said that Iranian officials “have never refused to go to Islamabad".

Mediators from Pakistan, Turkey and Egypt were working to bring the US and Iran to the negotiating table, according to two regional officials.

The proposed compromise includes a cessation of hostilities to allow a diplomatic settlement, according to a regional official involved in the efforts and a Gulf diplomat briefed on the matter.

They spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss closed-door diplomacy.

READ MORE: European ministers call for profit caps on energy companies

Iran threatens to disrupt traffic in second key strait

Iran’s parliamentary speaker, Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, issued a veiled threat late on Friday (Saturday AEDT) to disrupt traffic through a second strategic waterway in the region, the Bab el-Mandeb.

The strait, 32 kilometres wide, links the Red Sea with the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean. More than a 10th of seaborne global oil and a quarter of container ships pass through it.

“Which countries and companies account for the highest transit volumes through the strait?” Qalibaf wrote.

More than 1,900 people have been killed in Iran since the war began.

In Gulf Arab states and the occupied West Bank, more than two dozen people have died, while 19 have been reported dead in Israel and 13 US service members have been killed.

In Lebanon, more than 1,400 people have been killed and more than a million people have been displaced. Ten Israeli soldiers have died there.

READ MORE: Grocery prices expected to climb as shops pass on cost of war

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Artemis II toilet acts up again as astronauts speed toward the moon

Now more than halfway to the moon, the Artemis II astronauts prepared for their historic lunar fly-around to push deeper into space than even the Apollo astronauts.

On the downside, their toilet is on the blink again.

The three Americans and one Canadian are set to reach their destination on Monday, photographing the mysterious lunar far side as they zoom around.

READ MORE: Artemis II's moonbound astronauts capture Earth's brilliant blue beauty

This photo provided by NASA shows the moon seen from the Orion spacecraft Integrity during the Artemis II mission on Friday, April 3, 2026. (NASA via AP)In this image from video provided by NASA, Artemis II astronauts, from left, Reid Wiseman, Jeremy Hansen, Christina Koch and Victor Glover gather for an interview en route to the moon on Saturday, April 4, 2026. (NASA via AP)

It is the first moon-bound crew in more than 53 years, picking up where NASA's Apollo program left off.

"The Earth is quite small, and the moon is definitely getting bigger," pilot Victor Glover reported.

Until the Orion capsule's bathroom is fixed, Mission Control has instructed the astronauts to break out more of the backup urine collection bags.

The so-called lunar loo malfunctioned following Wednesday's liftoff and has been hit-and-miss ever since.

A version of the Artemis II toilet was tested on the International Space Station several years ago.

READ MORE: Motorists encouraged to dob in servos as 93 locations fined for price gouging

Commander Reid Wiseman looks at the Earth from a window aboard the Orion spacecraft Integrity.

Engineers suspect ice may be blocking the line that is preventing urine from completely flushing overboard. The toilet is still open for No. 2 business.

Debbie Korth, NASA's Orion program deputy manager, said the astronauts have also reported a smell coming from the bathroom, which is buried in the floor of the capsule with a door and curtain for privacy.

"Space toilets and bathrooms are something everybody can really understand .. it's always a challenge," she said, noting that the space shuttle toilet was also often on the fritz.

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This photo provided by NASA shows the Earth seen from a window on the Orion spacecraft Integrity during the Artemis II mission en route to the moon on Friday, April 3, 2026. (NASA via AP)

John Honeycutt, chair of the mission management team, said it is human nature to be interested in the space commode, and even though it is "in a good state right now," he'd like it to be working at 100 per cent.

"They're OK," he said of the astronauts. "They trained to manage through the situation."

Artemis II is poised to set a distance record for humans, traveling more than 400,000 kilometers from Earth before hanging a U-turn behind the moon and heading home without stopping or entering lunar orbit.

The record is currently held by Apollo 13.

The exterior of the Orion spacecraft Integrity.

The Canadian Space Agency celebrated the country's role in the mission, speaking from Quebec with astronaut Jeremy Hansen as he headed toward his lunar rendezvous. Hansen is the first non-US citizen to fly to the moon.

"Today he is making history for Canada," Canadian Space Agency President Lisa Campbell said. "As we watch him taking this bold step into the unknown, let his journey remind us that Canada's future is written by those who dare to reach for more."

In the live televised linkup, Hansen said he has already witnessed "extraordinary" views from NASA's Orion capsule.

In this photo provided by NASA, astronaut Christina Koch, background left, is illuminated by a screen inside the darkened Orion spacecraft Integrity on the third day of the Artemis II mission, Friday, April 3, 2026. At right, Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen looks out of one of Orion's windows. (NASA via AP)

Hansen, Glover, Reid Wiseman and Christina Koch are the world's first lunar astronauts since Apollo 17's crew of three in 1972. Koch and Glover are the first female and first Black astronauts to the moon, respectively.

Their nearly 10-day mission — ending with a Pacific splashdown on April 10 — is the first step in NASA's bold plans for a sustainable moon base.

The space agency is aiming for a landing by two astronauts near the lunar south pole in 2028.

READ MORE: European ministers call for profit caps on energy companies

Motorists encouraged to dob in servos as 93 locations fined for price gouging

Motorists are being encouraged to dob in service stations suspected of price gouging as almost 100 locations are fined in a state-wide blitz.

NSW Fair Trading officers inspected nearly 1800, about 75 per cent, of the state's 2400 service stations in the past fortnight.

During the operation, 93 fines were issued, 24 of which were from public tip-offs alone.

READ MORE: Clock ticks on Trump's 48-hour deadline as US and Iran race to find missing pilot

NSW Fair Trading officers inspect service stations across the state.

Retailers found breaking the rule face on-the-spot fines of $1100 or court penalties of up to $22,000 for individuals and $110,000 for corporations.

The state is monitoring whether service stations are following the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission's new price gouging rules and passing down the cost savings from the federal government's fuel excise reduction.

Most of the state's service stations will be physically inspected in the coming weeks, with regional areas being a key target.

In the meantime, NSW Fair Trading has urged motorists to report service stations and price issues via its website or FuelCheck.

It comes as the state pours $2.2 million into upgrading FuelCheck, a government-run app that provides real-time fuel prices, as more people reach for the service in light of surging fuel prices.

READ MORE: Taxi company's fear as fuel prices, Uber and 'rogue cowboys' smash industry

The NSW government is upgrading the FuelCheck app in light of the fuel crisis.

The number of people using the app increased by 490,000 from 10,000 in January to 500,000 in March. 

The funding will improve data collection from fuel retailers, data analysis and design.

"Over the past two weeks, millions of NSW motorists have turned to FuelCheck to help find the best fuel price and navigate fuel supply gaps," Fair Trading Minister Anoulack Chanthivong said.

"These are uncertain times, but we want the people of New South Wales to have the utmost confidence in the real-time price transparency data provided by FuelCheck."

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