The U.S. Army Apache helicopter went down while patrolling over the Strait of Hormuz
Credit: Eric Lee/Bloomberg via Getty
NEED TO KNOW
- Two U.S. Army members were rescued at sea after their helicopter went down in the Middle East
- Their identities were not released, and no injuries were reported
- President Donald Trump alleged via a Truth Social post that “the Iranians shot down” the aircraft
The United States has launched defensive strikes against Iran after two Americans were aboard a downed Army helicopter.
“U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) forces began launching self-defense strikes against Iran at 5 p.m. ET today at the Commander in Chief’s direction, in response to yesterday’s downing of a U.S. Army Apache helicopter," the government agency said in a statement posted to X on Tuesday, June 9. "The mission is a proportional response to unjustified Iranian aggression."
The post came less than 24 hours after the soldiers, who have not been publicly identified, were rescued from the sea by American forces at approximately 7:33 p.m. ET on Monday, June 8, CENTCOM said.
At the time of the incident, the aircraft was "patrolling regional waters" when it went down near the coast of Oman, per CENTCOM.
“The Soldiers were safely rescued within approximately two hours and are in stable condition,” officials said.
On Monday, CENTCOM added that the cause of the incident was under investigation. However, on Tuesday, NBC News reported that the Apache was brought down by an Iranian drone, citing a U.S. official.
President Donald Trump co-signed the news on Monday, writing on Truth Social, “I have just been informed by our Great Military that last night the Iranians shot down one of our highly sophisticated Apache Helicopters while patrolling over the Strait of Hormuz.”
“There were two pilots involved, both are safe and uninjured. Nevertheless, the United States must, of necessity, respond to this attack. Thank you for your attention to this matter!” the president, 79, wrote.
Despite a ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran, Monday’s attack marks the second time American service members have been rescued amid the Middle East conflict, The Hill reported, adding that the ongoing conflict recently hit 100 days.
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Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi addressed the attacks in a post to X on Tuesday, urging Americans to exit the Strait of Hormuz.
“Foreign forces in proximity to our territory are at constant risk on account of their own human errors, plain accidents, or potentially being caught in crossfire. To reduce risk, best solution is for them to leave. We prefer language of diplomacy but speak other languages too,” he wrote.
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