US forces are continuing to search for a missing American crew member after an F-15 fighter jet was downed in southern Iran yesterday.

If you're just catching up on the news, here's what to know:

• A pilot that was also aboard the aircraft has been rescued
• Iranian officials are offering rewards of about £50,000 ($66,100) to citizens who help capture the missing airman, state media have reported
• Iran claims it has shot down an American A-10 Warthog that was part of the search-and-rescue mission for the first downed aircraft
• The Warthog's pilot ejected over the Gulf and was subsequently rescued, the BBC's US news partner CBS reports

• US President Donald Trump told NBC "we're in war", and said the attack on the fighter jet will not affect any negotiations with Iran
• Separately, the US says that 365 service members have been wounded in action since the start of the US-Israeli war with Iran

A US fighter jet being downed by enemy forces is an exceptionally rare occurrence, something that has only happened a couple of times over the last few decades.

Three US F-15 fighter jets were downed over Kuwait in "an apparent friendly fire incident," in early March, US Central Command (Centcom) said. All six crew members were able to safely eject.

All six crew members of a US military refuelling aircraft were killed in an incident involving a second aircraft on March 12 in western Iraq, Centcom also said.

On 7 April 2003, a US F-15E Strike Eagle was downed over Iraq during Operation Iraqi Freedom, killing pilot Eric Das and weapons officer William Watkins.

The flight took off from Al Udeid Air Base, in Qatar, to perform a “critical interdiction mission”, attacking targets near Tikrit, Iraq, according to the US Navy Memorial website.

A US A-10 Thunderbolt II plane is also believed to have been shot down by a surface-to-air missile in Baghdad, Iraq, on 8 April 2003, according to the US air force. The pilot safely ejected before the aircraft crashed.

Another F-15E fighter jet crashed in northeast Libya in March 2011. Four aircraft and two helicopters were sent to recover the pilot, the US Marine Corps said at the time.

Image source, EPA

Syrian state TV is reporting explosions being heard in the Syrian capital Damascus and its countryside area early on Saturday. The cause is unknown, Reuters news agency says.

The explosions may have been a result of Israeli air defences intercepting Iranian missiles, state TV says.

Israel's Magen David Adom (MDA) emergency services say one person has been injured after the Israeli military said they were working to intercept Iranian missile attacks.

A 45-year-old man was treated for minor injuries from glass shrapnel in the central city of Bnei Brak, on the outskirts of Tel Aviv, and taken to hospital, MDA says.

Ghoncheh Habibiazad
Senior reporter, BBC Persian

Following reports that an American fighter jet had been shot down in Iran, Iranian outlets claimed one of two crew members had ejected and may have landed in the country’s south.

US officials have told the BBC's US news partner, CBS, that the pilot of the jet has been rescued and the missing crew member is a weapon systems officer.

State-affiliated Iranian channels have urged citizens to “capture the pilot alive” and offered rewards.

In one widely circulated example, Iranian outlets reported on a reward of around £50,000 ($66,100), an amount that is strikingly higher than the country’s estimated monthly salary range of £150 to £230.

Soon after, videos began circulating showing armed civilians in two southern provinces searching for the crew member.

In one unverified video from southern Khuzestan province, several men carrying firearms and the Islamic Republic’s flag can be seen searching for them, with one individual saying, “God willing, we will find him.”

Bahrain's interior ministry is reporting the sound of sirens in its country as it alerts citizens to "head to the nearest safe place".

Earlier, four citizens sustained minor injuries and several houses were damaged in Sitra – not far from the capital Manama – after shrapnel fell "from the interception of Iranian drones", the interior ministry said in a post on X.

Meanwhile over in Dubai, in the UAE, the government media office says shrapnel from a successful aerial interception fell on the facade of a building in the Dubai Marina area.

There were no fires or injuries, it says.

Bernd Debusmann Jr
White House reporter

As the US races to find the missing US fighter jet crew member in Iran, specialist US combat search and rescue units will be scouring the area in Blackhawk helicopters, according to a former US Air Force Pararescue Jumpers commander.

Speaking to the BBC's US partner, CBS News, the former commander says if the rescue target is in an area inaccessible to a helicopter, pararescuers will jump from a plane and resume rescue operations on foot.

Once on the ground, pararescue jumpers aim to contact the missing crew member, render medical aid if necessary, evade or hold off the enemy and get to a location where they can be rescued.

Calling their jobs "harrowing and massively dangerous" is an understatement, says the commander, adding that these pararescuers are known as "the Swiss Army knives of the Air Force".

Read more: How elite US teams tackle combat rescue missions

A total of 365 US service members have been wounded in action since the start of the US-Israeli war with Iran, according to figures released by the Pentagon.

They come from the following divisions:

• Army - 247
• Navy - 63
• Marines - 19
• Air Force - 36

The death toll remains at 13, according to the figures.

Israel's military says it is conducting strikes in Lebanon's capital, Beirut.

The Israel Defense Forces says the strikes are targeting "Hezbollah infrastructure sites" in the city.

Grace Eliza Goodwin
Reporting from New York

Experts are telling the BBC that the ongoing search for the missing crew member of the downed US fighter jet is extremely time-sensitive, as Iran races to locate the same personnel as US combat search and rescue crews.

"It's the most dangerous military mission that I know of," says James Jeffrey, a military strategist and top US diplomat who has served as special representative for Syria and special envoy to the international military intervention against Islamic State (IS) group in Iraq.

Such missions are often conducted by helicopters, with refuelling aircraft in support and other military aircraft on hand to conduct strikes and patrol the area. Verified video that emerged from Iran on Friday appears to show such a mission under way over Khuzestan province.

"These are Air Force special operations people who are trained almost to the level of Delta Force and Navy SEAL Team Six, but they also have medical capabilities," Jeffrey tells the BBC. "They will not give up until they can find a pilot if they think there's any chance."

When a jet is shot down over enemy territory, the pilot and crew from that aircraft are also highly trained for such a situation.

"Their number one priority is to stay alive and to avoid capture," Jennifer Kavanagh, a senior fellow and the director of military analysis at think tank Defense Priorities, tells the BBC.

"And so they're trained to - assuming that they're physically capable, and not so injured that they can't move - to try to get away from the ejection site as quickly as possible, and to conceal themselves so that they are safe."

They're also trained in survival techniques so they can go without food or water or find resources from the local terrain for as long as possible, Kavanagh adds.

Video appears to show US search and rescue operation in southern Iranpublished at 01:24 BST

01:24 BST

Earlier BBC Verify confirmed a video showing what appeared to be a US plane accompanied by two helicopters flying over southern Iran as a search and rescue operation was carried out for the crew of the downed F-15 fighter jet.

We have confirmed the video was filmed in Khuzestan province, near a bridge over the Karun river, at this location: 31.591393, 50.275430.

The video has been checked for recency and for signs of AI manipulation.

Reports from the US, quoting unnamed officials, say the mission led to the rescue of one of the crew members but there's still an ongoing search for the second crew member.

BBC Verify will continue to check footage said to show this operation.

Image source, EPA

There have been reports that the Israeli military is holding off striking southern Iran as the search for the missing US fighter jet crew member continues.

Elsewhere though, heavy explosions in east Tehran have been heard by two sources, our BBC Persian senior reporter says.

Three others have told the BBC that they have heard fighter jets in the sky. Iranian outlets have said that air defences have been activated in the city.

Earlier, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) confirmed another wave of strikes in Tehran.

In the past 24 hours, the IDF said it had carried out "more than 70 strikes in western and central Iran targeting ballistic missile launch sites and unmanned aerial vehicles". In a separate update, it also said it had started striking parts of Beirut.

It added it had identified missiles launched from Iran toward Israel.

Jacob Phillips
Live reporter

One crew member has been rescued from a US F-15E fighter jet that was downed in southern Iran, US media report.

What has happened to the second crew member on the jet remains unknown, but CBS, the BBC's US news partner, reports that the search is ongoing, citing two officials.

CBS says the rescue mission included two helicopters and an A-10 Warthog plane - the outlet adds one helicopter carrying the rescued pilot from the F-15E jet was hit by small arms fire, injuring crew members on board, but landed safely.

The A-10 Warthog assisting with the US rescue efforts was hit, and the pilot ejected over the Gulf, CBS reports. Iran's army claims to have shot down an A-10 Warthog, according to state media - it's not clear if this is the same plane that CBS is reporting on.

Verified footage appears to show a US plane and two helicopters searching for the fighter jet's crew in the Khuzestan province.

There have also been reports that the Israeli military has held off strikes in the area, while the search operation is being undertaken.

US President Donald Trump told US network NBC "we're in war", and the attack on the fighter jet will not affect any negotiations with Iran.

Image source, X

We have moved our live coverage here and will continue to bring you the latest developments from the war in the Middle East, as the conflict nears the end of its fifth week.

Here's a recap of what has been happening:

• Iran is claiming to have shot down two US warplanes – one F-15 flying over the southwest of the country and a second plane involved in a mission to rescue the F-15's crew.
• Two crew members were in the F-15 jet, with one member rescued and the other airman still missing, the BBC's news partner CBS reports. The pilot of the second downed plane, an A-10 Warthog, ejected safely over the Gulf and was rescued, CBS reports.
• Iran is offering rewards to anyone who captures the missing crew member alive, Iranian state TV reports, and US crews were reportedly met with gunfire during search-and-rescue efforts.

• The apparent incident comes despite US President Donald Trump saying on Wednesday that Iran's drone and missile capabilities had been "decimated".
• Asked by the BBC about the first fighter jet that was reportedly shot down, the White House provided a statement that said only that "the president has been briefed".
• Meanwhile, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu claims Israeli strikes have destroyed 70% of Iran's steel production capacity - and says Israel and the US will continue to "crush" the country.