United States President Donald Trump has accused Iran of shooting down an American Apache helicopter over the Strait of Hormuz and warned that Washington would be forced to retaliate.
The helicopter went down on Monday, but both pilots survived.
The US military said the two crew members were pulled from the water by an unmanned surface drone operated by a Bahrain-based American naval unit that manages drone operations across the Middle East.
The soldiers were transferred to another vessel on the water before being airlifted to safety by helicopter.
"There were two pilots involved, both are safe and uninjured," Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.
"Nevertheless, the United States must, of necessity, respond to this attack."
As of Tuesday, Iran had made no formal response to Trump's accusation. The semi-official Iranian outlet Mehr News Agency reported only that Tehran had not claimed responsibility for the incident.
The incident threatens to throw a spanner into nuclear peace talks between the US and Iran that Trump himself had described as nearly concluded.
Earlier on Tuesday, Trump told reporters the talks were in "the final throes of what will be a very, very good deal," and predicted a formal agreement within two to three days, after which, he said, the Strait of Hormuz would reopen to international shipping immediately.
The Strait of Hormuz is one of the world's most critical oil shipping lanes, accounting for a fifth of global oil freight.
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