President Donald Trump on Tuesday said the US would respond after Iran allegedly shot down an American military helicopter over the Strait of Hormuz.
In a post on Truth Social, Mr Trump said he had been informed by the US military that an Apache helicopter had been brought down overnight while conducting a patrol.
“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,” he wrote. “The US must, of necessity, respond to this attack."
Mr Trump said the aircraft had two pilots on board and that both were safe and uninjured.
Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi wrote on X that foreign forces that are close to Iran's territory are at "constant risk on account of their own human errors, plain accidents or potentially being caught in crossfire".
"To reduce risk, best solution is for them to leave. We prefer language of diplomacy but speak other languages too."
Earlier, the US Central Command said two crew members from a US Army AH-64 Apache had been rescued after their helicopter went down near the coast of Oman.
The US Central Command said the soldiers were rescued within two hours and were in stable condition, adding that the incident remains under investigation.
The development comes as Mr Trump has struggled to secure a ceasefire for the war he started on Iran, alongside Israel.
Israel on Tuesday conducted renewed air strikes on Lebanon, including on the southern city of Tyre, killing at least nine people and wounding dozens more.
