Iran has suggested that a US airman rescue mission could have been a cover for stealing enriched uranium, heightening tensions following a downed F-15E incident.

Iran’s foreign ministry has suggested a recent US operation to rescue a downed airman may have been a cover to steal enriched uranium from the country, The Caspian Post reports, citing foreign media.

Foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said on Monday there were “many questions and uncertainties” about the mission, which President Donald Trump described as a “daring” search and rescue to recover a second crew member from an F-15E that went down over Iran on Friday.

“The area where the American pilot was claimed to be present in Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad Province is a long way from the area where they attempted to land or wanted to land their forces in central Iran,” Baqaei stated.

“The possibility that this was a deception operation to steal enriched uranium should not be ignored at all,” he added, calling the operation “a disaster” for the United States.

Iran’s military has previously labelled the mission “a deception and escape mission” that was “completely foiled”.

The military also claimed several US aircraft had to “make emergency landings” in southern Isfahan province after being hit during the mission, forcing the US to “heavily bombard the downed aircraft” as a result.