The United States Central Command (CENTCOM) announced that American forces have launched “self-defense” strikes against Iran. According to the statement, the attacks are a response to the downing of a U.S. helicopter on Monday. President Donald Trump declared that the retaliation should be strong and decisive. After four hours, the U.S. attack concluded.
“CENTCOM forces struck Iranian air defense systems, ground control stations, and surveillance radar sites near the Strait of Hormuz using precision-guided munitions fired by U.S. Air Force and U.S. Navy fighter aircraft,” the command reported.
Iran responded with attacks on U.S. bases in the Middle East.
“CENTCOM forces began conducting self-defense strikes against Iran today at 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time (11:00 p.m. in Poland) under the orders of the Commander-in-Chief,” CENTCOM wrote in a statement.
It added that “these actions are a response to the downing of a U.S. AH-64 Apache helicopter yesterday.”
“The mission constitutes a proportional response to unjustified aggression by Iran,” the command stated, which is responsible for U.S. forces in the region. “I think it is very important to respond. They shot down a helicopter, and we are responding to that right now,” Trump told ABC News. “This is a reaction to what they did last night to our helicopter. I believe the response should be very decisive, very strong – and that is exactly what it is,” the president added.
A U.S. official told Fox News that the strikes were ongoing and targeted, among other things, Iranian air defense systems and radar installations. The Associated Press, citing a government source, reported that the helicopter crashed after colliding with an Iranian drone.
Iranian media reported sounds of explosions heard in the southern part of the country.
Iran responsible for hitting the Apache
Earlier on Tuesday, the U.S. president stated that Iran was responsible for shooting down the Apache helicopter over the Strait of Hormuz on Monday.
He declared that the United States “must respond” to the attack. Iran has not claimed responsibility for downing the helicopter.
CENTCOM reported that both crew members of the Apache were rescued by a U.S. Navy maritime drone, which pulled them from the water approximately two hours after the incident. The soldiers were transported to the coast of Oman.
Late Monday night, Trump, commenting on the then-unexplained crash of the helicopter, argued that he was very close to reaching an agreement with Iran. He assessed that it could happen within two to three days. The war between the U.S. and Israel and Iran began on February 28, and a ceasefire started on April 8.
End of the attack
The Central Command (CENTCOM) reported that the strikes ended at around 9:00 p.m. Eastern Time (3:00 a.m. in Poland).
“CENTCOM forces struck Iranian air defense systems, ground control stations, and surveillance radar sites near the Strait of Hormuz using precision-guided munitions fired by U.S. Air Force and U.S. Navy fighter aircraft,” the statement reads.
The command emphasized that “the operation was a proportional response to recent attacks on U.S. forces and international commercial vessels transiting regional waters.”
“U.S. forces remain vigilant and ready to defend against unjustified Iranian aggression,” it added.
Tehran’s response
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) reported that in response to U.S. strikes in southern Iran, it attacked the U.S. Fifth Fleet in Bahrain using drones – Reuters reported, citing Iranian state media. It added that clashes are ongoing. The U.S. side has not yet commented on these reports.
Bahrain’s Interior Ministry stated that warning sirens were activated in the country early Wednesday morning. A spokesperson for the King of Bahrain said that the country’s air defense systems repelled Iranian attacks. One U.S. official told The New York Times that “the situation is dynamic.”
In a statement, the IRGC warned of a “more decisive response” if U.S. “aggression” continues. The Guards also reported that U.S. strikes damaged a telecommunications tower and two water tanks in the Iranian port city of Bandar Sirik.
The IRGC said in a statement that its forces carried out 21 attacks on U.S. military bases in the region and shot down a U.S. MQ-9 drone. It also claimed to have attacked the U.S. military base Al-Azraq in Jordan using ballistic missiles – The New York Times reported.
Claims by the IRGC regarding 21 attacks “are simply not true,” a U.S. official told the newspaper.
Another U.S. official, cited by Axios, reported that Iran launched at least four ballistic missiles and several drones toward U.S. military bases in Bahrain, Kuwait, and Jordan.