United States President Donald Trump has vowed that Washington will respond after Iran allegedly shot down an American Apache helicopter during a patrol mission over the Strait of Hormuz.
Naijaonpoint reports that Trump made the claim in a post on his Truth Social account on Tuesday, saying he had been briefed by the US military on the incident.
According to him, the aircraft was a “highly sophisticated Apache Helicopter” and was on patrol over the Strait of Hormuz when it was allegedly attacked overnight.
Trump said two pilots were on board the helicopter at the time of the incident, adding that both of them survived and were not injured.
He wrote, “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. Nevertheless, the United States must, of necessity, respond to this attack. Thank you for your attention to this matter!”
Trump did not immediately disclose the nature of the response being considered by the United States.
The alleged incident is expected to further heighten tensions between Washington and Tehran, especially because of the strategic importance of the Strait of Hormuz.
The waterway is one of the world’s most important oil shipping routes, with a large volume of global crude oil and gas shipments passing through it.
Any military confrontation in the area often raises concerns over energy supply, maritime security and wider instability in the Middle East.
As of the time of filing this report, Iranian authorities had not publicly responded to Trump’s claim.
The US military had also not released further details on the circumstances surrounding the alleged downing of the helicopter.
