U.S. search-and-rescue helicopters placed in northern Iraq

A helicopter on patrol.
(Image credit: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

The Pentagon is deploying search-and-rescue helicopters to northern Iraq in an effort to shorten the amount of time and distance to reach downed pilots.

The move came after ISIS released a video Tuesday purporting to show Jordanian fighter pilot Lt. Muath al-Kaseasbeh being burned alive, CBS News reports. Al-Kaseasbeh was captured by ISIS after his F-16 crashed in Syria, and U.S. officials say that once the jet was down, a massive airborne search was initiated, but al-Kaseasbeh was taken by ISIS militants before he could be located.

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Catherine Garcia, The Week US

Catherine Garcia is night editor for TheWeek.com. Her writing and reporting has appeared in Entertainment Weekly and EW.com, The New York Times, The Book of Jezebel, and other publications. A Southern California native, Catherine is a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.