The Washington Post reported that President Donald Trump was secretly evacuated from Ankara on a military jet after US intelligence detected an Iranian assassination threat, with the president transferred via a catering truck to a C-32A aircraft while Air Force One served as a decoy carrying journalists and White House staff who were unaware of the switch [1][4][10]. The operation came a night after US forces renewed strikes on Iran following a breakdown in negotiations [3]. Trump boarded Air Force One in view of cameras before being moved to the smaller military aircraft, with the transponder switched off [11][36]. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth boarded a separate C-32A using external stairs to maintain the appearance of normalcy [13][14]. Journalists were told to keep window shades closed, a procedure typically used only in combat zones [15]. An X account tracking military aircraft helped reconstruct the secret flight after the fact [9].
Trump confirmed the plane switch, stating he followed Secret Service and military directives without asking for details about the threat [5][17][20]. He told reporters they were "probably on a dangerous flight because of the sleazebags we have to deal with" [4][26] and joked "if I go, you go" [10][11]. Trump also stated that the plane he ultimately flew on faced "greater risk" than Air Force One [22][25]. Separately, Trump declared himself "number one on the kill list for Iran" [19][24], denied that Israel supplied the underlying intelligence [32] — though the Wall Street Journal reported that Israel had briefed the US on a portable surface-to-air missile threat [26][28] — and stated on Truth Social that 1,000 missiles are aimed and ready to fire at Iran if it acts on its threat [34]. He told an ABC reporter that he struck Iran before they could strike him [35].
White House Communications Director Steven Cheung defended the security measures, stating the new Air Force One is "a state-of-the-art aircraft that has been fitted with high-level security protocols" [1][4][10]. White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt stated the new Air Force One is "perfectly safe for the president's travels" but will receive additional upgrades in the fall [4][14]. Dawn and Prothom Alo, citing the New York Times, reported that the Qatari-donated aircraft lacks anti-missile defenses and other protections found on the older plane [6][15].
Former US ambassador to Turkey James Jeffrey said the secrecy "indicates that they had very good intelligence of a threat" and that the intelligence may have come from Israel [25]. VnExpress, citing anonymous US officials, reported that US intelligence detected a specific surface-to-air missile threat and that Iran knew Trump's exact location in Ankara, including his floor [18]. Walla News, citing the New York Times, reported that a person with a shoulder-fired missile was detected near the NATO summit venue [37]. Former State Department counterterrorism coordinator Nathan Sales called the Iranian regime a "clear and present danger" to Trump [32], and former Pentagon deputy press secretary Sabrina Singh called the threat credible [32].
Ankit Panda of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace stated that "from the Iranian perspective, pulling off an attempted targeting of presidential aircraft at this depth would be extremely implausible" [25][44]. Jeffrey Lewis of the Foreign Policy Research Institute said "Iran doesn't have surface-to-air missiles that could target an aircraft taking off from Ankara" [25][44]. Middle East Eye reported that Turkish officials suspect Israel fabricated the assassination warning to derail US-Iran negotiations and Trump's rapport with Erdogan [27][31], a suspicion echoed in South Korean coverage [41]. A member of Iran's Supreme Council of Cyberspace, Ezzatollah Zarghami, stated that Trump was "within reach" for retaliation over Khamenei but that Iran chose not to strike him to preserve neighborly relations [33].
Committee to Protect Journalists regional director Jose Zamora stated that "reporters should be informed of credible security threats so they can make informed decisions about their safety" [4][25]. Former CIA officer Steven Cash said "it appears that the idea was we can reduce the danger to President Trump by offering up 100 or so people to be killed by the Iranians in his place" [25][41]. Former deputy to the US ambassador to the UN Ned Price said the administration perpetuated an "outright lie" and turned reporters into "unwitting conspirators" [25][44]. Former Clinton press secretary Joe Lockhart said the Trump team did not give a second thought to anyone but the president [38], and screenwriter Andrew W. Marlowe said he was not sure he could script such a moment for a heroic main character [38].
Former White House press secretary Ari Fleischer defended the Secret Service, stating that protecting the president is their job when a credible threat exists [23]. Former deputy White House chief of staff Joe Hagin argued that those who travel with the president accept a degree of risk and that broader disclosure would have jeopardized his safety [38]. Former Secret Service agent Paul Eckloff called the move unusual but said it could reflect actionable intelligence or an abundance of caution [8][24].
Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal called the operation "unprecedented and surreal" and demanded a congressional investigation [8][19][24][25]. Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer stated it was "unacceptable that Congress was left in the dark" and demanded an immediate briefing on the Iranian threats and the measures taken [26][28][45].
BBC Swahili reported that the assassination threat must be understood within the broader collapse of the US-Iran ceasefire, driven by disputes over the Strait of Hormuz and Iran's regional standing [42]. University of Chicago professor Robert Pape argued that Trump does not want to admit strategic defeat and that the war has strengthened Iran's regional influence [42]. Hamidreza Azizi of the German Institute for International and Security Affairs explained that Tehran's ceasefire terms concerned transit fees rather than relinquishing its role over the Strait of Hormuz [42].
The Secret Service declined to comment on the operation [19][24]. Congressional briefings have been requested but no date has been announced [26][28]. Trump has stated that the US has swept the entire Strait of Hormuz of mines and that the waterway is open to commercial traffic [5].