The United States carried out at least three waves of airstrikes against Iranian targets on Tuesday night, in what President Donald Trump described as a retaliatory operation following the downing of an American military helicopter.

Explosions were reported near the Strait of Hormuz, with Iranian state media outlets Mehr and Fars news agencies posting reports of blasts on Qeshm Island and in the port city of Bandar Abbas on Iran’s southern coast.

US CENTCOM later released a statement saying that the strikes were completed, but cautioned “US forces remain vigilant and postured to defend against unjustified Iranian aggression.”

House Speaker Mike Johnson confirmed he was present in the White House Situation Room alongside the President and senior officials in the hours before the operation was launched. He described the strikes as “proportional and limited,” saying they targeted radar, missile, and command-and-control sites.

A U.S. official told journalist Barak Ravid that the operation comprised three separate strike waves. Reports also indicated that strikes were conducted against a base of the Iranian Army Land Force in Zahedan, in eastern Iran, as part of the third wave.

Iranian air defenses reportedly shot down two American drones during the operation — one over the city of Jam in the Bushehr region and another over southern Iran, according to unverified reports circulating on Telegram.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi responded to the strikes with a combative statement posted on X. “Despite its defeats on the battlefield, the US opted to test our determination,” he wrote. “Our powerful armed forces will leave no attack or threat unanswered.”

“Leave our region if you want to be safe,” Araghchi continued. “History of the Persian Gulf has many chapters on dire fates of intruding outsiders.”

The situation remains fluid. Further details are expected to emerge in the coming hours.