U.S. forces carried out three waves of strikes against Iran on Tuesday night, in retaliation for the downing of a U.S. Army Apache helicopter near the Strait of Hormuz, after President Trump vowed a forceful response and Iran threatened to hit back.

U.S. Central Command announced the first wave shortly after 5 p.m. Eastern, saying its forces had begun launching self-defense strikes at the commander in chief’s direction. CENTCOM called the operation “a proportional response to unjustified Iranian aggression.” A follow-on wave struck later in the evening, extending the assault across southern Iran’s Hormozgan coast.

Trump had signaled the response earlier Tuesday. In a post on social media, he said the military had informed him that Iran shot down one of the helicopters while it patrolled over the Strait of Hormuz, that both crew members were safe and uninjured, and that “the United States must, of necessity, respond to this attack.”

Trump described the operation as it unfolded. Speaking by phone with ABC News as CENTCOM released its statement, he said the strikes were a response to the helicopter’s downing and that the U.S. was “responding as we speak,” adding that he believed the reply should be strong and powerful. He said a deal to end the war was still very good and would probably hold.

Iranian state and local media reported strikes across a string of military sites near the strait. According to unofficial local reports in Hormozgan province, the strikes targeted the Sirik and Jask naval bases, an air defense position in Bandar Abbas, coastal missile batteries in Minab and Qeshm, and the port of Qeshm. Iranian state television confirmed a projectile strike in Sirik, and said explosions and air defense activity were reported in Bandar Abbas, Qeshm and Sirik, while the semiofficial Mehr news agency reported strikes at Jask and Kouhe Mobarakeh. A local report said two water tanks were hit in Sirik’s Bamani district, cutting drinking water.

A U.S. official sought to frame the strikes as limited. The strikes were intended as a warning rather than a broader escalation, and Washington does not believe they will derail negotiations to end the conflict, the official told CNN. Adm. Brad Cooper, the CENTCOM commander, briefed senators for about 90 minutes.

Iran vowed to retaliate. Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Iran’s armed forces “will leave no attack or threat unanswered” and warned U.S. forces to leave the region to be safe, while the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ Aerospace Force said it would deliver a heavy response.

The AH-64 Apache went down near the coast of Oman during a patrol. U.S. officials said the helicopter was brought down by an Iranian drone, and that the aircraft was assigned to the 101st Combat Aviation Brigade of the 101st Airborne Division. Its two crew members were pulled from the water by an unmanned Navy vessel within about two hours and were in stable condition — the first time the U.S. military has used a sea drone to recover personnel. CENTCOM had said Tuesday morning that the cause was under investigation and, at that point, did not assign responsibility to Iran.

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