Iran will “pay the price” for taking “too long” to negotiate a Middle East peace deal, President Donald Trump cautioned Wednesday, making his pledge in the wake of Washington and Tehran exchanging fire following the downing of an American helicopter over the contested waters of the Strait of Hormuz. “Iran’s Military is a complete and total mess,” the U.S. president outlined on his Truth Social platform. “Much of it, like their Navy and Air Force, doesn’t even exist anymore — They have been completely defeated.” “They’ve taken too long to negotiate a deal that would have been great for them, now they will have to pay the price!!!” he added.
Overnight and into Wednesday morning the U.S. and Iran exchanged fire following the shooting down of an American helicopter, which Trump blamed on Tehran, as Breitbart News reported. The Apache attack helicopter was felled while it was patrolling near the strategic waterway and Trump said a response was necessary. U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) said its forces began carrying out “self-defense strikes” at Trump’s direction at approximately 5 p.m. Eastern time, describing the operation as “a proportional response to unjustified Iranian aggression.”
