Studio insiders indicate that the production team is prioritizing absolute technical accuracy, consulting directly with defense specialists to replicate the exact command structures utilized during the mission.

By Eliana Fleming, JFeed

Universal Pictures and acclaimed director Michael Bay have officially entered advanced development on a high octane feature film titled Operation Epic Fury, which details the harrowing real life rescue of two United States military aviators.

The cinematic project is moving exceptionally fast through the studio pipeline, capitalizing on intense public interest regarding recent tactical engagements in the Middle East.

The screenplay is being adapted from an upcoming biographical book authored by Mitchell Zuckoff, which is currently scheduled for global publication next year.

The core narrative focuses on the dangerous, behind enemy lines extraction mission launched to recover an American pilot and a weapons systems officer after their F-15E Strike Eagle was shot down by hostile fire.

The aircraft crashed deep within the treacherous terrain of the Zagros Mountains in Iran, sparking an immediate, high stakes race against time as elite recovery units attempted to reach the downed crew before enemy forces could locate them.

The film aims to capture the extreme environmental hazards and intense tactical pressure experienced by both the survival team on the ground and the rescuers in the air.

The production structure brings together a highly experienced team of industry veterans, with Michael Bay producing the film alongside Erwin Stoff, while the screenplay adaptation is being executed by Scott Gardenhour.

This project represents a highly anticipated creative reunion for Bay and Zuckoff, who previously collaborated on the successful 2016 military biographical film 13 Hours, The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi.

Studio insiders indicate that the production team is prioritizing absolute technical accuracy, consulting directly with defense specialists to replicate the exact command structures utilized during the mission.

The project has already generated substantial buzz within the entertainment industry due to its direct relevance to contemporary geopolitical events.

By focusing on the raw, human element of survival and the logistical complexity of elite extraction operations, the studio intends to deliver a realistic portrayal of modern aerial combat.

Production schedules and initial casting calls are expected to be finalized over the coming months as the writers polish the final shooting script.

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In a U.S. rescue mission in Iran, the CIA deployed a top-secret weapon called “Ghost Murmur,” capable of detecting and locating a specific heartbeat from more than 40 miles away.

The post WATCH: The secret CIA weapon that helped locate downed US airman in Iran appeared first on World Israel News.

From elaborate deception plans to hundreds of ground troops, the U.S. Air Force pulled off one of the most incredible rescue missions in history—saving two downed airmen deep in enemy territory.

The post WATCH: Leave no man behind – How the US rescued their downed airmen appeared first on World Israel News.

President Donald Trump and senior U.S. officials provided an operational update on the daring rescue of two U.S. airmen stranded deep inside Iran and the overall success of Operation Epic Fury.

Trump on Iran: “The entire country could be taken out in one night. That night might be tomorrow night.” pic.twitter.com/8JUkSmrypI

— ILRedAlert (@ILRedAlert) April 6, 2026

Trump on Operation Epic Fury: “Over the past 37 days, America’s armed forces have carried out more than 10,000 combat flights over Iran, striking more than 13,000 targets… It’s a record that is unparalleled in the history of military air operations.” pic.twitter.com/cfs2aFo1lR

— Breaking911 (@Breaking911) April 6, 2026

The post WATCH: Trump praises heroic rescue of US airmen, gives ultimate warning to Iran appeared first on World Israel News.

Netanyahu earlier in the day shared that he had spoken with U.S. President Donald Trump and was “deeply proud” that Israel could “contribute to saving a brave American warrior.”

By JNS

U.S. ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee on Monday said that the Israel Defense Forces and the Mossad were “helpful partners” in the rescue mission of the American colonel from deep Iranian territory.

The diplomat tweeted that he had just met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and thanked Israel on behalf of the American people for its “unprecedented assistance” to U.S. military and intelligence agencies to conduct the rescue of the U.S. air crew.

U.S. special forces carried out a “brilliant” operation, he added.

Netanyahu earlier in the day shared that he had spoken with U.S. President Donald Trump and was “deeply proud” that Israel could “contribute to saving a brave American warrior.”

He tweeted, “The President expressed his appreciation for Israel’s help,” adding that the Israeli-U.S. “cooperation on and off the battlefield is unprecedented.”

The post Huckabee thanks Israel for IDF, Mossad help in rescue of air crew appeared first on World Israel News.

The daring operation sends a clear warning to Iran’s leadership, says ex-Navy captain.

By World Israel News Staff

A successful mission to extract a wounded U.S. airman deep inside Iran after he ejected from an F-15 fighter jet is evidence that the United States has achieved air superiority over Iran, according to a former senior military official.

Retired Navy Captain Brent Sadler, who served for 26 years and now works as a senior research fellow at the Allison Center for National Security, said the operation demonstrated Iran’s inability to effectively counter U.S. Air Force activity within its own borders.

Speaking to Fox News on Sunday, Sadler described the mission as a clear signal to Iran’s leadership, saying the operation showed “that we can get anywhere that we so choose and hold ground as long as we desire to accomplish a mission.”

Sadler added that the mission had implications for future operations, proving that “not only can we rescue our pilots, but we can also go to where we need to secure nuclear equipment or the remainders of their leadership.”

While operational details remain classified, Sadler said that regional coordination played a key role in the mission’s success.

“Our Gulf partners would have had to have given some clearance for the aircraft to fly through. They wouldn’t know what it was for,” he said. He also pointed to possible coordination with Israel, suggesting Israeli forces may have adjusted their own military activity to divert Iranian attention during the rescue effort.

“I think they were deeply integrated into this, to shift their targets and their attacks so that it would draw the Iranians away or keep them busy as we focused on locating and exfiltrating our pilot,” Sadler said.

He emphasized that Iran should take note of what he described as overwhelming U.S. military superiority, particularly as tensions escalate and diplomatic efforts stall.

His remarks come as Donald Trump has issued a firm deadline for a potential agreement to end the conflict, warning that Iran’s leadership would be “living in hell” if no deal is reached by Tuesday evening.

“Despite going and hunting down and successfully exfiltrating our pilot, the operations and the attacks continued,” Sadler said. “That means the deadline that President Trump has given is very serious—and the regime in Tehran better take it as such, because there’s a lot more that’s coming their way if not.”

The post Airman rescue proves US controls Iranian skies: Military expert appeared first on World Israel News.

American special operations forces braved Iranian airspace and fierce firefights to rescue both crew members of an F-15E fighter jet downed by Iranian air defenses.

THE BIG STORY

CIA ran a deception effort inside Iran, pushing a false narrative that the downed airman had already been found and was being moved on the ground.

While Iranian forces chased that story, the CIA identified his real location in the mountains and passed it to… https://t.co/8ZV1EYUFFL pic.twitter.com/i803IOjxHt

— Open Source Intel (@Osint613) April 5, 2026

The post WATCH: Detailed breakdown of the rescue mission in Iran appeared first on World Israel News.

Several U.S. Air Force rescue aircraft that stalled after rescuing a U.S. Weapons Systems officer—whose F-15E was shot down over Iran—were later destroyed by U.S. ground troops, denying the Islamic regime access to American technology.

Aerial footage of the site where two U.S. HC-130J Combat King II rescue aircraft and at least two helicopters were apparently destroyed by U.S. airstrikes. pic.twitter.com/2G07y7GMS1

— Clash Report (@clashreport) April 5, 2026

The post WATCH: Footage of wrecked US planes involved in daring rescue mission deep in Iran appeared first on World Israel News.

The IDF’s 401st Armored Brigade has spent hundreds of days in Gaza under fire, and its self-made rescue unit, Battalion 52, has saved the lives of dozens of its members.

The post WATCH: Inside this lifesaving IDF rescue unit appeared first on World Israel News.

The video shows IDF soldier Yarden applying tourniquets and bandages to wounded soldier Anton’s leg while under heavy Hamas attack in the Gaza Strip.

Anton, this is Yarden I’m coming to rescue you. pic.twitter.com/v88H7hDElS

— Mossad Commentary (@MOSSADil) April 17, 2025

The post WATCH: Dramatic video shows IDF rescue operation under heavy fire in Gaza appeared first on World Israel News.

Eligible for citizenship, they must be brought to Israel after the severe abuse they suffered at the hands of the Lev Tahor cult, MKs told.

By Batya Jerenberg, World Israel News

The Knesset Committee for Immigration, Absorption, and Diaspora Affairs urged the government Monday to repatriate 100 of 160 Jewish children rescued in December from a cult in Guatemala who are seemingly eligible for Israeli citizenship.

The other 60 are American and Canadian citizens.

In the hearing, the MKs were told that the minors were being held in various shelters in the Central American country, whose authorities raided the compound of the radical Lev Tahor sect after allegations of severe child abuse there prompted them to act.

They will not be kept in the facilities much longer, however, and are in great danger of being returned to the cult if the Israeli government doesn’t act immediately, the aunt of four of the children told the Committee.

“The police in Guatemala did the hard work for the State of Israel, and now the government must complete the work and bring them to Israel,” said Orit Cohen Amir. “If the Israeli government does not wake up, the children will return to experiencing mental, sexual and physical abuse.”

Shas MK Yinon Azoulay agreed that the issue was urgent.

“The children in the cult are in danger of death,” he said, and the government must bring them to the country “and ensur[e] they are in appropriate absorption frameworks.”

They would need intense psychological treatment for the terrible sexual and physical traumas they have undergone, the MKs were told.

The cult starves its members due to its twisted ideals of kashrut and claims it is “forbidden to receive medical treatment,” cult survivor Amir Boyer attested, adding that “there is no contact with the outside world.”

It has been previously reported that Lev Tahor leaders have used young girls in the group as their sex slaves, and Azoulay testified that “within the cult, there are children who are 13 years old who are already parents.”

Maya Nussbaum, a legal representative of the families of those ensnared, said that if a rescue operation is not implemented, “we fear that … the children will be smuggled to secret locations around the world, as has been the case until now. The legal phase has already exhausted itself; now is the time for action to bring the survivors.”

The children will have homes to go to, she noted, saying, “We have submitted dozens of requests for guardianship to date.”

MK Gilad Kariv, the Committee’s chairman, said that his group will be keeping a “close” eye on the issue, as the state “cannot remain indifferent” to the children who are residents of Israel and is “obligated to work to return them to the country and provide them with protection – as we would do for any Israeli citizen who is in danger overseas.”

In response, a representative of the Prime Minister’s Office called it a “complicated matter with many aspects, and we are trying to understand all the details.”

However, according to Yaakov Friedberg, an attorney from the Justice Ministry, “We have an excellent understanding of the international legal tools that need to be worked on … thanks to the Israeli delegation that went to Guatemala.”

“The children are currently not under the effective control of the cult, and this allows us to use legal tools to bring them to Israel,” Friedberg said, noting that 33 guardianship orders have been ordered to date.

Foreign Ministry officials said that the ministry is “in constant contact” with the Guatemalan authorities on the issue and that “the State of Israel’s involvement in the return of the children is clear and unequivocal.”

Kariv demanded to receive by next week a “clear directive from the Prime Minister’s Office” on “how it intends to act on the issue,” including timetables on the children’s return.

The post Israeli lawmakers urge repatriation of 100 children rescued from cult in Guatemala appeared first on World Israel News.

Israel‘s Nuseirat rescue operation on June 9 saw Israeli forces free four hostages, who had been held by Hamas since October 2023.

By Algemeiner and Reuters Staff

The Palestinian terrorist group Hamas said it had information that Israel intended to carry out a hostage rescue operation similar to one conducted in Gaza’s Nuseirat camp in June and threatened to “neutralize” the captives if any such action took place, according to an internal statement seen by Reuters on Wednesday.

In the statement dated Nov. 22, Hamas told its operatives not to consider what the repercussions of following the instructions might be and said it held Israel responsible for the fate of the hostages.

The statement, which a senior Hamas source told Reuters was circulated to its factions by the intelligence unit of the group’s military wing Izz el-Deen al-Qassam Brigades, did not say when any Israeli operation was expected to take place.

There was no immediate Israeli response to the statement. On Wednesday, Israeli media cited Defense Minister Israel Katz as saying pressure on Hamas was increasing and this time “we will really be able to advance a hostage deal.”

Israel‘s Nuseirat rescue operation on June 9 saw Israeli forces free four hostages, who had been held by Hamas since October 2023.

In the Hamas statement, the group told its operatives to “tighten” the living conditions of the captives and said this should be done in accordance with instructions issued after the Nuseirat operation.

In a section titled “recommendations,” Hamas also instructed its operatives to “activate neutralization orders … as an immediate and swift response to any adventure by the enemy.”

Hamas-led Palestinian terrorists kidnapped over 250 hostages during their invasion of and massacre across southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023. About 1,200 people were killed in the onslaught, and thousands more were wounded.

Israel responded with an ongoing military campaign to its south in Hamas-ruled Gaza to free the hostages and dismantle the terrorist group’s military and governing capabilities.

Hamas is still holding 101 hostages — including 97 who were kidnapped amid the Oct 7. atrocities, at least a third of whom are believed to be dead.

The post Hamas says it will execute hostages if IDF attempts rescue missions appeared first on World Israel News.

‘It’s very moving. You know you’re making history here,’ he said.

By Anna Epshtein, TPS

On Thursday, Israel announced that soldiers recovered the bodies of five hostages from Khan Yunis.

Ravid Katz, Maya Goren, Oren Goldin, Sgt. Kiril Brodski and Staff Sgt. Tomer Yaakov Ahimas were all killed on October 7 and their bodies taken to Gaza.

All were already declared dead based on intelligence information.

The location of the bodies — a tunnel below the southern Gazan city — was learned primarily from interrogations of Palestinian terrorists captured in Gaza.

One of the soldiers involved in the mission, a reservist in an elite unit who cannot be identified, shared his story with The Press Service of Israel.

“I was one of the few people who actually were in the tunnel where the dead bodies were found. When we found the bodies, it was after a few similar operations in the recent weeks that ended with nothing,” he told TPS-IL.

On locating the bodies, he said, “It’s very moving. You know you’re making history here. It’s not just bringing the dead to be buried in Israel, but also to restore resilience in all of the Israeli public — resilience that was shattered on October 7.”

‘A Very Complicated Mission’

It was, he explained, “A very complicated operation from the engineering point of view, in a tunnel 20 meters below the earth, in the heart of fighting, where there were half a million people a week before we found the bodies.”

He told TPS-IL, “We cleared the area, ordering the population to evacuate, to find the tunnel and the bodies. We brought a lot of soldiers there. It was very complicated. I don’t know how much the public knows about that. The IDF invests so much in bringing home the hostages and the missing. Thousands of soldiers, night after night fought there for three weeks to bring these people to a burial in Israel. To allow these searches, you need a sterile area. And soldiers fight for this.

“You also need to know that this is a long war. In the beginning of the war the spirit was, ‘We don’t go home.’ But now the commanders try to send the soldiers home with any chance. Both the soldiers and the commanders are exhausted. The load on the soldiers is enormous. The soldiers are burnt out. And still, they perform any task at the highest possible level. I’m on the way home now, and I already have the task for Sunday,” he stressed.

“The war in Gaza is for many years. Everybody who fights there understands that this war will take many more years, because we are bearing fruits of many years of negligence. We saw Rafah, we saw the Philadelphi corridor with its dozens of tunnels,” he said.

The Philadelphi corridor refers to a buffer zone running the length of the Palestinian side of the 14 km Gaza-Egypt border.

It was created in 2006 to prevent weapons smuggling when Israel disengaged from the Strip, but Hamas violently seized control of Gaza the following year.

“Everybody knew they (the tunnels) were there. Israel knew, Egypt knew. And yes, they are in the hands of Hamas. It’s years and years of Sisyphean task. And yet we shall win, and we are already winning now. We just need to let ourselves acknowledge this,”the soldier said.

At least 1,200 people were killed, and 252 Israelis and foreigners were taken hostage in Hamas’s attacks on Israeli communities near the Gaza border on October 7.

Of the 115 remaining hostages, 39 have been declared dead. Hamas has also been holding captive two Israeli civilians since 2014 and 2015, and the bodies of two soldiers killed in 2014.

The post ‘A very complicated operation’: Soldier recounts Gaza rescue appeared first on World Israel News.

‘Hamas’s ammunition is draining, and they cannot restock it anymore, this ongoing military pressure is crucial to achieving Israel’s goals.’

By Sveta Listratov, TPS

In the aftermath of Israel’s rescue of four hostages in a bold daylight raid on Saturday, one military expert said the operation would increase the likelihood of Hamas making meaningful concessions for a hostage release and ceasefire.

The Israel Defense Forces rescued Noa Argamani, 26, Almog Meir Jan, 21, Andrey Kozlov, 27, and Shlomi Ziv, 40, under heavy fire in the Nuseirat refugee camp of central Gaza.

One Israeli was killed during the operation. He was identified as Arnon Zamora, an officer in the police’s elite Yamam counterterror unit.

The number of Palestinians killed during the fighting could not be independently confirmed.

“Only military pressure can lead to the release of hostages, either through military operations in the heart of the Gaza Strip or through negotiations where Hamas is backed into a corner, ensuring that the terms of the hostages’ release do not compromise Israel’s security interests,” Lt.-Col. (res.) Yaron Bouskila told The Press Service of Israel.

Bouskila is the CEO of the Israel Defense and Security Forum, a research institute based in Modiin.

He also serves as a reserve operations officer of the IDF’s Gaza Division.

“There is a very clear rule that proves itself – friction creates intelligence. Either intelligence by sight from findings in the field or through prisoner interrogations. All the successes and achievements we’ve made so far are due to the information we’ve gathered from the field,” Bouskila noted, highlighting the importance of intelligence gathered during the ground operations in Gaza.

According to Bouskila, “The IDF understands that Hamas had prepared defenses with brigades and battalions against them in every civil location, and it has broken through their structured defenses everywhere except Rafah. Now we see them operating in small units because we’ve dismantled their framework. This is a very successful phase.”

In the absence of a comprehensive ground operation in Rafah, the situation there will remain challenging. But successes elsewhere in Gaza may provide further intelligence and momentum in Rafah, Hamas’s last stronghold.

“Senior commanders and many hostages are located in the Rafah area. It is clear that the more we advance towards Rafah, the more achievements we hope to bring, including the release of live hostages,” Bouskila told TPS-IL.

If not for international pressure on the Israeli leadership, “taking control over Rafah could have been completed within a week. “This affects our ability to achieve any accomplishments. Hamas is less prepared there for combat.”

As TPS-IL reported, Hamas’s grip on Gaza governance is weakening. But instead of strengthening itself, the terror group is adapting its capabilities to the immediate goal of survival.

According to Bouskila, “Hamas’s ammunition is draining, and they cannot restock it anymore. This ongoing military pressure is crucial to achieving Israel’s goals.”

At least 1,200 people were killed, and 252 Israelis and foreigners were taken hostage in Hamas’s attacks on Israeli communities near the Gaza border on October 7. Of the 116 remaining hostages, more than 30 are believed dead.

The post Israeli hostage rescue signals promising momentum in war, expert says appeared first on World Israel News.

The video shows Yamam special forces firing at Hamas terrorists as they stormed the building where the hostages were held.

The post WATCH: Bodycam footage of IDF rescue operation released appeared first on World Israel News.

The two men under fire were bundled into the helicopter, which took them to the hospital for medical evaluation.

The post WATCH: The moment special ops brought the hostages aboard the helicopter appeared first on World Israel News.