Donald Trump has launched strikes against Iran in retaliation for the shooting down of an Apache helicopter in the Strait of Hormuz.US Central Command said in a statement that it 'began launching self-defense strikes against Iran at 5pm ET today at the Commander in Chief's direction, in response to yesterday's downing of a US Army Apache helicopter.'The mission is a proportional response to unjustified Iranian aggression.'The strikes remain ongoing and it is not immediately clear which Iranian targets are under attack. Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps promised a 'decisive response to the US aggression', according to the Tasnim news agency. Trump's fresh strikes come just hours after he vowed revenge on Iran in a Truth Social post, warning: 'The United States must, of necessity, ⁠respond ​to this ​attack.'US Central Command said two pilots were rescued from the Persian Sea after their aircraft crashed off the coast of Oman. The helicopter was brought down by an Iranian Shahed drone, with one US official telling CNN it remains unclear whether the aircraft was deliberately targeted. Trump's order plunges the fragile ceasefire which has held since early April into chaos and comes just days after the President demanded Israel and Iran cease their attacks on each other. Donald Trump gestures as he steps off Air Force One, early Tuesday, June 9 US Central Command said two pilots were rescued from a Middle Eastern waterway after their aircraft crashed off the coast of Oman. The President confirmed that Iran was responsible The helicopter was brought down by an Iranian Shahed drone, with one US official saying it remains unclear whether the aircraft was initially targetedThe US and Iran have been locked in a stalemate for weeks, with Trump insisting that a peace deal is close, only for it to fall apart.Trump remains adamant that Iran must give up its nuclear ambitions, while Tehran has demanded that any deal must include a truce in Lebanon.Iran launched missiles at Israel over the weekend over its attacks on Tehran's proxy terror group Hezbollah in Lebanon.Israel retaliated but the two sides agreed to halt attacks on Monday after Trump's demand. Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi earlier warned US forces to leave the Strait of Hormuz after Trump vowed retaliation for the Apache shoot-down.'The Strait of Hormuz is NOT international waters but shared between Iran and Oman... Foreign forces in proximity to our territory are at constant risk on account of their own human errors, plain accidents, or potentially being caught in crossfire,' he said.'To reduce risk, best solution is for them to leave. We prefer language of diplomacy but speak other languages too,' he added.The Apache is the second crewed aircraft that Washington has confirmed was shot down by Iran during the war, following the loss of an F-15 fighter jet in April. An oil tanker burns after being hit by an Iranian strike in the ship-to-ship transfer zone at Khor al-Zubair port near Basra, Iraq, on March 11Join the discussionWhat should be America’s top priority now: deterring further attacks, securing a peace deal, or avoiding a wider regional conflict?What's your view?The war has strangled the Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of global oil flows, while Washington has imposed a blockade on Iranian ports.Trump had earlier urged Israel and Iran to to stop 'shooting' and said that 'final negotiations' towards peace would proceed.In the recent escalation of attacks, Iran fired nearly 30 missiles at Israel, according to the Israeli military, while Israel struck military sites in the Islamic republic.Iranian state media reported on Tuesday that three people including two members of the Army Air Defense Force were killed in Israeli strikes a day earlier. No casualties were reported in Israel following the exchange.Iranian media reported early Tuesday that Tehran's international airport, closed during the missile exchanges, had reopened, allowing flights carrying hajj pilgrims from Saudi Arabia to land.