US and Iran trade strikes after helicopter crash
Shafaq News- Washington/ Tehran
The US on Wednesday launched a new wave of strikes against targets in southern Iran, hitting air defense systems and radar installations in retaliation for the earlier downing of a US Army Apache helicopter in the Strait of Hormuz.
According to US Central Command (CENTCOM), the response, ordered by US President Donald Trump, was "defensive" and "proportional." Explosions were heard across Iran's southern Hormozgan province, including in Qeshm, Sirik, Minab, and Bandar Abbas, cities overlooking the Gulf of Oman where Tehran maintains military, naval, and surveillance facilities.
— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) June 10, 2026
Citing a US official, Axios revealed that the strikes also targeted Iranian command-and-control infrastructure, stressing that American forces remain prepared to defend themselves against any "unprovoked Iranian aggression."
Iran moved quickly to retaliate. Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters, the country's central military command, disclosed that Tehran responded with a drone operation targeting the US Fifth Fleet in Bahrain.
Iranian state television indicated disruptions to drinking water supplies in parts of Hormozgan province after two water reservoirs in the Bimani area of Sirik were hit during the American attacks. It dismissed reports that commercial ports on Qeshm Island had come under attack.
Earlier, Trump described the crash involving a US Apache helicopter as not a "major incident," noting that the pilot was safe.
Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi denied Iranian involvement in the incident over the strategic waterway, maintaining that "Iran was not behind the attack" and that there had been no deliberate action targeting the aircraft.
The downing of the helicopter marks the first reported loss of a US Apache since the April 8 ceasefire between Washington and Tehran. The Gulf region, however, has witnessed repeated flare-ups in recent weeks, including strikes involving Iranian islands and military sites.
