Washington: US strikes Iran military sites near the Strait of Hormuz began Tuesday at 5 p.m. EST after a U.S. Apache helicopter went down, U.S. Central Command said.
CENTCOM said the military launched the strikes at President Donald Trump’s direction. It described the mission as a proportional response to what it called unjustified Iranian aggression.
Axios reporter Barak Ravid, citing a senior U.S. official, said the strikes targeted Iranian air defence batteries and radar systems.
Iranian state media reported attacks on Sirik, Bandar Abbas and Qeshm Island near the Strait of Hormuz. Both Apache crew members had been rescued by an unmanned surface vessel and were stable.
Read: Araghchi Foreign Forces Warning Follows US Chopper Claim
Hamidreza Haji Babaei, deputy speaker of Iran’s parliament, warned that more U.S. attacks could trigger strikes on regional energy infrastructure.
The report said U.S. and Iranian officials still signalled that diplomatic talks remained active.
