WASHINGTON — US forces carried out strikes against Iran yesterday in what President Donald Trump said was retaliation for the downing of an American helicopter by the Islamic Republic a day earlier.
Iranian media said that following a series of explosions along Iran’s southern coast near the Strait of Hormuz, the situation was “now reported to be calm.”
Digital news outlet Axios reported that US forces had attacked several Iranian air defense systems and radar systems around the strait.
Following the strikes, Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi threatened to retaliate.
“Despite its defeats on the battlefield, the U.S. 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,” Araghchi posted on X.
The US strikes came just hours after Trump had said negotiations to end the Middle East war were in their final stages—a claim he has made repeatedly in the past few weeks.
But after the downing of a US Army Apache helicopter on Monday, Trump said the United States was responding “in a strong manner” after “what they did with our helicopter last night,” in a telephone interview with ABC News.
“And I believe the response should be very strong, very powerful, and that’s what this one is,” he said.
US Central Command (CENTCOM) said American forces “began launching self-defense strikes against Iran, at 5 pm yesterday at the Commander in Chief’s direction” and “the mission is a proportional response to unjustified Iranian aggression.”
A shaky ceasefire between the warring parties has been in place since April 8, but it faced a major test when Iran and Israel renewed attacks over the weekend, before each side announced a halt.
Israeli attacks on Lebanon continued, however, and Lebanese officials said 11 people were killed in airstrikes on Tuesday on the historic city of Tyre in the south of the country.
The Israeli military also warned the entire city to evacuate.
An AFP correspondent saw residents of Tyre, including from the Christian quarter, fleeing and heavy traffic heading north after the Israeli warning.
Another correspondent in the coastal city of Sidon, further north, saw displaced people arriving from Tyre, some with belongings hastily strapped to the roofs of their cars.
Tehran has insisted a halt to the war must include a truce in Lebanon, which was drawn into the conflict when Iran-backed Hezbollah militants fired rockets at Israel on March 2.
Israel responded with an extensive campaign of airstrikes and a ground invasion that has killed more than 3,600 people. Exchanges of fire with Hezbollah have not stopped despite an ongoing truce.
