- US military launched strikes on Iranian air defence near Strait of Hormuz after Apache downing
- Explosions reported in Jask, Bandar Abbas, Qeshm Island, and Sirik in southern Iran
- Iran vowed retaliation, warning US to leave the region and launched drone attack on US Fifth Fleet
The US military has launched strikes against Iran in response to the Iranian forces downing a US Apache helicopter near the Strait of Hormuz, risking military escalation with Tehran, even as American President Donald Trump is seeking a deal to end the war. According to US officials, several Iranian air defence and radar systems around the Strait of Hormuz were targeted in the strikes, following which Tehran has pledged to leave no "attack or threat unanswered".
According to an Al Jazeera report, explosions were heard in Jask and Bandar Abbas in Iran, but there is no clarity about the scope of this wave of attacks. Iran's Tasnim news agency reported that explosions were also heard on Qeshm Island, marking the latest in a series of blasts to shake the area.
The report added that explosions had previously been heard across other locations in southern Iran, including Sirik.
Citing US officials, Axios reported that US forces launched three rounds of strikes in Iran, with air defence systems and radars among the targets.
But Iran's Fars news agency reported that two water tanks in the Bemani district of Sirik were also struck and destroyed.
Iran Vows Response
Following the new wave of attacks, Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said the US had chosen to "test" Tehran's "determination" and the Iranian armed forces would "leave no attack or threat unanswered".
"Leave our region if you want to be safe," he added.
Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), meanwhile, claimed they responded to US strikes by launching a drone attack on the US Fifth Fleet in Bahrain. In a statement, the IRGC said that clashes are ongoing and warned that heavier retaliatory measures will follow if the US military "aggression" continues.
The IRGC also confirmed that the US launched attacks against several locations in southern Iran's Jask, Sirik, and Qeshm Island, damaging a telecommunications tower and destroying two water tanks in Sirik's Bemani district.
Iran's Khatam al-Anbiya agency also said some US bases in the region were targeted in a powerful attack launched by the army of the Islamic Republic and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard, meaning it was a joint attack.
Meanwhile, Bahrain's Ministry of Interior confirmed the attacks and urged people “to remain calm and head to the nearest safe place”.
US Ends Strikes
The US military's Central Command has said that US forces have now "completed self-defence strikes against Iran" in response to yesterday's downing of a U.S. Army Apache helicopter.
The strikes came after Axios reported that an investigation into the downing of a US Apache gunship determined an Iranian drone hit the helicopter, causing it to crash near the Strait of Hormuz. The US official said the investigation had not determined whether it was intentional.
In a brief update shared on social media, CENTCOM described the attacks as "a proportional response to recent attacks on US forces and international commercial ships transiting regional waters".
"CENTCOM forces struck Iranian air defence, ground control stations, and surveillance radar sites near the Strait of Hormuz with precision munitions from US Air Force and Navy fighter jets," CENTCOM said.
"US forces remain vigilant and postured to defend against unjustified Iranian aggression," it added.
