The U.S. launched strikes against Iran Tuesday evening in response to the downing of an Army Apache helicopter near the Strait of Hormuz a day earlier, United States Central Command (CENTCOM) announced on social media.

“The mission is a proportional response to unjustified Iranian aggression,” CENTCOM said.

President Donald Trump told ABC News that the response to the downed helicopter “should be very strong, very powerful, and that's what this one is.” 

Initial reports indicated an Iranian drone had struck the helicopter but didn’t confirm whether the impact was intentional. But Trump wrote Tuesday on Truth Social that the Iranians had shot down the helicopter and “the United States must, of necessity, respond to this attack.” Trump also said the two pilots aboard the helicopter were uninjured.

Open-source intelligence reported strikes in southern Iran. CENTCOM said the strikes began at 5 PM U.S. Eastern Time. Fifty minutes later, a U.S. official told Fox News the strikes were ongoing and that targets included Iran’s air defenses.