US President Donald Trump has vowed to retaliate after accusing Iran of bringing down a US helicopter near the Strait of Hormuz on Tuesday.
In a post on social media, Trump said military commanders had informed him that “the Iranians shot down one of our highly sophisticated Apache Helicopters.” He also said the helicopter's two crew members survived the incident without injury.
"They are safe and uninjured," Trump wrote.
"Nevertheless, the United States must, of necessity, respond to this attack,” he added.
The incident marked the first publicly known use of a drone boat by the US military to recover personnel. The unmanned vessel rescued two aviators after their Apache attack helicopter crashed close to the strategic waterway, which Iran has largely shut to shipping during its conflict with the US and Israel.
