US launches strikes on Iran in response to downed Army helicopter
- Jun 9
- 3 min read
President Donald Trump accused Iran of shooting down a U.S. Apache helicopter near the Strait of Hormuz and said the United States must respond, while noting the pilots were unharmed and the incident came amid renewed cease‑fire talks.
WASHINGTON − The U.S. military launched strikes against Iran on June 9, hours after President Donald Trump vowed retaliation over the Islamic Republic downing an American Apache helicopter near the Strait of Hormuz.
U.S. Central Command, which oversees operations in the region, said U.S. forces launched "self-defense" strikes against Iran at about 5 p.m. ET "in response" to the attack on the helicopter on June 8. The two pilots on board were unharmed and are safe, according to Trump.
Central Command called the attack "a proportional response to unjustified Iranian aggression." The military command did not elaborate on what targets in Iran were struck. Iranian state media indicated the United States struck targets in Sirik and Qeshm Island, two areas near Hormuz.
The attack comes hours after Trump, in a June 9 post on Truth Social, said "the United States must, of necessity, respond to this attack." Renewed military action on Iran risks upending a fragile ceasefire between the two nations and could derail Trump's negotiations with Iran on a peace deal.
The crew of the Apache gunship was rescued Monday, June 8, after the aircraft went down near the Strait of Hormuz off the coast of Oman. Trump said the helicopter was patrolling over the strait but did not provide additional details about the attack.
Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi appeared to acknowledge Iran's responsibility for the helicopter attack in a statement posted on social media. He said foreign forces in Iranian territory are "at constant risk on account of their own human errors, plain accidents, or potentially being caught in crossfire.
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"To reduce risk, the best solution is for foreign forces to exit, as soon as possible, an environment which will never be hospitable to a foreign presence," Araghchi said. "Iran prefers the language of diplomacy. However, as our Brave Warriors have shown to the world, we know other languages too."
Trump has said he's unsure about bombing Iran again
Trump initially discussed the attack with reporters early Tuesday morning in New York after attending Game 3 of the NBA Finals. The U.S. at that time had still not determined who was responsible, but Trump said the two pilots were fine and no one had been injured.
In the same exchange with reporters ‒ prior to his threat to retaliate against Iran ‒ Trump expressed hesitance about renewing military action against Iran.
Trump said if the U.S. were to "spend another two or three weeks" bombing Iran then they would have "nothing left whatsoever," but the Strait of Hormuz would remain closed for months. The closing of the strait, which has faced competing blockades from the U.S. and Iran, has resulted in higher U.S. gas prices.
"If you do the bombing, you know, a lot of people are going to be killed. Who wants to do that? I don't," Trump said, adding than a signed agreement with Iran would be "actually stronger than the bombing."
Trump said the U.S. blockade on the strait has "turned out to be much stronger than bombing" because it has cut Iran off from trade. "Their economy is really suffering," he said.
Thirteen U.S. service members have been killed in the war in Iran, which Trump launched in late February with airstrikes. Trump has frequently made the point that the casualties in Iran are vastly fewer than the deaths during past American conflicts in Iraq, Afghanistan, Vietnam and elsewhere.
The helicopter attack happened a day after Iran and Israel said they had halted attacks on each other following an appeal from Trump, though Tehran warned it would resume hostilities if Israel continued to hit Hezbollah in Lebanon.
Despite the renewed fighting, Trump said he believes Iran wants to secure a peace deal with the U.S. ‒ which he has said repeatedly during negotiations without an agreement resulting.
"We should be able to do it in one hour, if you want to know the truth," Trump told reporters in New York. "I don't think there are any sticking points. I think we're very close to having a very good, strong, powerful deal."
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