Updated on June 9, 2026, at 9:27 pm EST
US Central Command announced on Tuesday that its forces began bombing Iran, attacks it said were a response to Iran allegedly shooting down a US Army Apache helicopter that was patrolling the Strait of Hormuz as part of the US enforcement of a blockade of Iranian ports.
Despite the attacks being part of the same war of aggression the US and Israel launched against Iran in February, CENTCOM is framing them as self-defense. “CENTCOM forces began launching self-defense strikes against Iran at 5 pm ET today at the Commander in Chief’s direction, in response to yesterday’s downing of a U.S. Army Apache helicopter,” the command said.
Iranian media reported explosions in Iran’s Hormozgan province, including the city of Sirik and its surrounding county, and in Qeshm, an island in the Strait of Hormuz. According to Iran’s PressTV, projectiles struck two water reservoirs in the Bomani district of Sirik country, temporarily cutting off water supplies. US officials claimed the strikes targeted several Iranian air defense and radar systems around the strait.
Several waves of US strikes were reported, with blasts reported in the port cities of Bandar Abbas, Jask, and more in Qeshm hours after the initial US attacks. CENTCOM later said that it had completed its attacks, but Iran is responding, with the IRGC announcing a drone attack on the US Navy’s Fifth Fleet in Bahrain.
Following the start of the US strikes, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi wrote on X, “Despite its defeats on the battlefield, the US opted to test our determination. Our Powerful Armed Forces will leave no attack or threat unanswered. Leave our region if you want to be safe.”
Earlier in the day, President Trump said in a post on Truth Social that the US “must respond” after the US military told him that a US Army Apache helicopter was shot down by Iranian forces in the Strait of Hormuz. Iran’s deputy foreign minister told Al Jazeera that Iranian forces did not deliberately target the US helicopter.
His post came after CENTCOM said that its forces rescued two crew members from the helicopter, and media reports said that the US was probing whether Iran was responsible for the incident, which came a day after a US F/A-18 fighter jet bombed an oil tanker that was trying to reach Oman.
“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,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
“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 added.
According to The Associated Press, the two crew members of the Apache spent about two hours in the water before being rescued by a 24-foot unmanned boat.
Tuesday’s incident comes after Iran struck Israel in response to Israeli strikes on the southern suburbs of Beirut. Israel then launched strikes on Iran, and President Trump called on the two sides to “stop shooting,” but shortly after his statement, CENTCOM announced the strike on an oil tanker.
