The United States launched military strikes against Iran on Tuesday, responding to Tehran’s downing of an American Apache helicopter the night before, according to U.S. Central Command.

In a statement announcing the operation, CENTCOM said, ”CENTCOM forces began launching self-defense strikes against Iran at 5 p.m. ET today at the Commander in Chief’s direction, in response to yesterday’s downing of a US Army Apache helicopter.”

The military command added, ”The mission is a proportional response to unjustified Iranian aggression.”

Shortly after the U.S. operation began, Iranian state-run media reported that a “projectile” had hit the port city of Sirik, located near the strategic entrance to the Strait of Hormuz.

Earlier in the day, a source familiar with U.S. military preparations indicated that any American response would likely focus on targets along Iran’s coastline near the strait, particularly locations believed to have been used to store or launch weapons.

The strikes came roughly four hours after President Trump disclosed that a military investigation had concluded Iran was responsible for bringing down the helicopter. Initial reports had described the incident simply as a crash.

Despite the attack, both American servicemembers aboard the aircraft survived. They were rescued approximately two hours later by a maritime drone after the helicopter went down.

Trump pointed to the crew’s survival while minimizing the severity of the incident, telling the Wall Street Journal that it “wasn’t a big deal” and stressing that “the pilot is fine.”

His comments contrasted with remarks he made less than a week earlier, when he said he would be open to a return to full-scale conflict if Iran were to kill American troops.

Meanwhile, an Iranian deputy foreign minister told Al Jazeera on Tuesday that the helicopter had not been targeted intentionally by Iranian forces.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, a key figure in ongoing diplomatic negotiations, also suggested the aircraft may have been brought down accidentally.

“Foreign forces in proximity to our territory are at constant risk on account of their own human errors, plain accidents, or potentially being caught in crossfire,” he posted to X. “To reduce risk, best solution is for them to leave.”

He further warned, “We prefer language of diplomacy but speak other languages too,” he added.