The U.S. military launched strikes on Iranian targets in retaliation for the downing of an Army Apache helicopter near the Strait of Hormuz, according to U.S. Central Command.
The operation began at 5 p.m. Eastern Time on Tuesday, which corresponds to 12:30 a.m. Wednesday in Iran. The command described the action as self-defense and said the strikes were ordered by President Donald Trump. About three hours later, CENTCOM posted on X that the self-defense strikes had been completed.
“The mission is a proportional response to unjustified Iranian aggression,” CENTCOM wrote in a social media post.
Shortly after the strikes were announced, Iranian state media reported that explosions were heard on an Iranian island in the Strait of Hormuz.
The retaliation followed the crash of a U.S. Army AH-64 Apache attack helicopter that went down Monday while patrolling regional waters near Oman. Two soldiers aboard the aircraft were rescued by American military forces within a couple of hours, CENTCOM said.
A U.S. official, speaking to The Associated Press on the condition of anonymity, said the helicopter crashed after colliding with an Iranian drone. The official said it was not clear whether the collision was intentional.
Earlier Tuesday, Trump posted on Truth Social that the military had told him the Apache was shot down by Iranian forces, and he pledged a retaliatory attack. Trump also blamed Iran for the incident and said the two pilots were not injured.
Speaking to reporters Monday night, Trump addressed the crew’s condition.
“The pilots are fine. Yeah,” Trump said, per Fox 4 KDFW. “Nobody injured. We are going to issue a report tomorrow. But the pilots are fine.”
The cause of the crash has not been formally released.
Earlier Tuesday, Trump spoke with reporters at John F. Kennedy airport about ongoing negotiations with Iran, a blockade, and the two soldiers involved in the Apache crash, suggesting the path of those talks could become clearer within a day or two.
The U.S. action comes after Iran and Israel halted strikes Monday following an exchange of missile attacks and airstrikes over the weekend. Those attacks marked the first direct fire between the two countries since a U.S.-brokered ceasefire took effect.
