NEW YORK, June 9. /TASS/. A US AH-64 Apache attack helicopter that was previously reported to crash-land over the Strait of Hormuz was downed by an Iranian kamikaze drone, US-based CNN agency reported on Tuesday citing its unnamed sources in the country’s administration.
According to CNN, the helicopter was shot down by an Iranian kamikaze drone Shahed and two crew members of the destroyed aircraft were later rescued and taken to safety by a US naval drone.
US President Donald Trump stated earlier in the day that the US Apache helicopter was shot down over the Strait of Hormuz by Iranian forces and the United States must respond.
"I have just been informed by our Great Military that last night the Iranians shot down one of our highly sophisticated Apache Helicopters while patrolling over the Strait of Hormuz. There were two pilots involved, both are safe and uninjured," he wrote on his Truth Social platform. "Nevertheless, the United States must, of necessity, respond to this attack."
The US military reported earlier that a probe had been launched into the crash of an AH-64 Apache helicopter near the Strait of Hormuz.
The United States and Israel launched a military operation against Iran on February 28. Major Iranian cities, including Tehran, were struck. Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps announced a retaliatory operation, targeting sites in Israel.
US military bases in Bahrain, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates were also hit. Tehran decided to close the Strait of Hormuz to ships associated with the United States, Israel and countries that backed the aggression against Iran.