Tensions escalate in Strait of Hormuz as US launches strikes and Iran warns of further retaliation.
Image: BBC
US President Donald Trump said the United States is delivering a “strong response” after an American Apache helicopter was reportedly shot down near the Strait of Hormuz.
Trump said the US was already responding to what he called an Iranian attack, adding that the response would be “very strong and very powerful.”
US officials said the helicopter went down near Oman’s coast while patrolling the strategic waterway. Two crew members were rescued by a US Navy drone and are reported to be in stable condition.
The US military’s Central Command confirmed strikes on Iranian targets but did not immediately explain the cause of the crash.
Iranian state media reported explosions in several areas of Hormozgan province, including Qeshm Island and Sirik, following US airstrikes.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said foreign forces in the region risk being caught in conflict or accidents, and urged them to leave the area to reduce tensions.
He did not directly address the helicopter incident but warned that Iran would respond to any continued “hostility.”
The incident comes amid renewed instability in the Strait of Hormuz, a critical global shipping route.
Separately, Israel carried out strikes on Lebanon’s Tyre port city, killing at least eight people, in one of the deadliest attacks there since fighting escalated earlier this year.
The overlapping conflicts have further strained efforts to maintain fragile ceasefires and revive stalled diplomatic talks involving the United States, Iran and regional actors.
