Kamal Ghorui
Iran fired on another American aircraft near the Strait of Hormuz on Friday, downing an A-10 Warthog attack plane near the Strait of Hormuz, US officials confirmed. The Iranian army claimed responsibility for the attack. The pilot was rescued, while further search and rescue operations were under way.This becomes the second US jet struck by Iran, as earlier it fired down an F-15 fighter jet. US President Donald Trump, in his first remark since the downing, when asked about whether the downing of jets would have any impact on the negotiations with Iran, simply described the situation as “a war”. Despite the escalation, Trump said the fresh hostilities would not affect ongoing US-Iran negotiations.“No, not at all. No, it’s war. We’re in a war,” Trump told NBC News when asked if the downing of American jets would alter diplomatic talks with Tehran. The US president, speaking during an interview, declined to provide any details about the search and rescue operations for the downed crews but vented frustration over the media’s coverage of the sensitive mission.A US official confirmed that an A-10 Thunderbolt was shot down near the Strait of Hormuz. The pilot of the A-10 managed to cross into Kuwaiti airspace before ejecting, and was later confirmed safe, though the aircraft crashed in Kuwait, NBC News reported. The Iranian army later claimed responsibility for the attack, as later reported by Al Jazeera.Earlier, an F-15 fighter jet was shot down by Iranian air defence systems over southwestern Iran, one of the two crew members of which was rescued.Iran’s attacks did not stop there. Two UH-60 Blackhawk helicopters mobilised to assist in the rescue effort were also hit, leaving several service members with minor injuries. “All of them are safe,” the official added.The series of Iranian strikes marks a sharp escalation less than 48 hours after Trump declared in a primetime address that Iran had been “completely decimated.”
