{"id":6094,"date":"2026-06-09T05:28:31","date_gmt":"2026-06-09T12:28:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/infonews.ca\/news\/7670230\/the-latest-federal-judge-strikes-down-trumps-100000-fee-on-new-h-1b-visas\/"},"modified":"2026-06-09T16:30:19","modified_gmt":"2026-06-09T23:30:19","slug":"the-latest-us-military-launches-strikes-against-iran-in-response-to-downing-of-american-helicopter","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/infonews.ca\/inwheels\/news\/6094\/the-latest-us-military-launches-strikes-against-iran-in-response-to-downing-of-american-helicopter\/","title":{"rendered":"The Latest: US military launches strikes against Iran in response to downing of American helicopter"},"content":{"rendered":"

The U.S. military said Tuesday it has begun strikes against Iran<\/a> following the crash of a U.S. Army Apache helicopter off the coast of Oman that U.S. President Donald Trump blamed on the Islamic Republic. <\/p>\n

The helicopter went down after colliding with an Iranian drone, according to a U.S. official, who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity to discuss an ongoing investigation. It wasn\u2019t clear whether the collision was intentional, and official statements only said the crash is under investigation.<\/p>\n

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi responded on social media, saying Iran \u201cwill leave no attack or threat unanswered.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLeave our region if you want to be safe,\u201d he said on X.<\/p>\n

The attack comes after President Donald Trump blamed Iran for downing the helicopter and vowed that the U.S. would respond.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, a bill to provide nearly $70 billion for immigration enforcement<\/a> narrowly passed the House on Tuesday and now goes to President Donald Trump<\/a> for his signature, fueling the administration\u2019s deportation agenda for the remainder of his time in the White House.<\/p>\n

The Latest:<\/p>\n

Trump\u2019s getting close to picking a more permanent intelligence director, Johnson says<\/p>\n

The speaker spent hours with Trump in the Situation Room earlier on Tuesday, and told reporters he believes Trump is nearing an announcement on a nominee to permanently lead the office of national intelligence.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s been interviewing the people \u2014 there\u2019s five candidates, as was discussed today, and yesterday,\u201d Johnson said. \u201cI do think \u2014 very close to getting that done. It\u2019s an important position and one that I think will be filled by a highly qualified person.\u201d<\/p>\n

Johnson\u2019s remarks came within minutes of Trump posting that he was naming Pulte as acting director, as of June 19, a choice that has angered lawmakers from both parties and put reauthorization of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, a spy tool known as FISA, at risk.<\/p>\n

Iran \u2018will leave no attack or threat unanswered,\u2019 its top diplomat says<\/p>\n

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi responded on social media after the U.S. military carried out strikes following the crash of an American Army helicopter near the Strait of Hormuz.<\/p>\n

\u201cLeave our region if you want to be safe,\u201d he said on X.<\/p>\n

Iranian state media has reported that explosions were heard on Qeshm Island in the Strait of Hormuz, a critical shipping lane that Iran has effectively closed during the war, before saying that the wave of American attacks in the south has \u201csubsided.\u201d<\/p>\n

Speaker Johnson says he was notified ahead of US strike on Iran<\/p>\n

Johnson said he spent several hours earlier in the Situation Room with Trump, the vice president, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and the CIA director discussing the Iran war and other matters, including the FISA surveillance program.<\/p>\n

The Republican speaker called the strikes on Iran \u201ctargeted\u201d and \u201cdefensive in nature.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe lament that has become necessary,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

But he said after Iran struck U.S. assets and personnel in the region, \u201cWe can\u2019t allow that.\u201d<\/p>\n

He said the U.S. response was \u201cproportional.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hegesth to visit Guantanamo Bay Navy base as US continues to apply pressure on Cuba<\/p>\n

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth will travel to an American military base on the island of Cuba Wednesday as the U.S. continues an oil blockade against the country and following Trump\u2019s threats to oust its leaders by force.<\/p>\n

The Pentagon said Hegseth will visit troops on the U.S. Navy base on Guantanamo Bay, which the U.S. operates despite diminished relations since the 1960s. Hegseth will also visit troops at U.S. Central Command headquarters in Florida.<\/p>\n

The top U.S. commander in Latin America met with Cuban military leaders in May in a \u201cbrief exchange on operational security matters.\u201d<\/p>\n

Trump has warned of using military force against Cuba, while American warships operate in the Caribbean Sea. The U.S. also indicted former Cuban President Ra\u00fal Castro<\/a> on federal charges.<\/p>\n

Trump doubles down on ally Pulte to serve as acting intelligence director<\/p>\n

The president said on social media that Bill Pulte will takeover as acting intelligence director on June 19, sticking by the provocative pick even as lawmakers from both sides of the aisle say the selection could sink reauthorization of a critical surveillance tool used by the intelligence community.<\/p>\n

Trump added that Pulte is \u201cworking closely\u201d with Tulsi Gabbard, the current director of national intelligence, and will remain in his role as director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency and chairman of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.<\/p>\n

Republicans have been warning the White House that a critical surveillance authority<\/a> is likely to lapse on Friday without reauthorization because of the bipartisan backlash over Trump\u2019s pick of Pulte to temporarily lead<\/a> the nation\u2019s intelligence community.<\/p>\n

Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, set to lapse June 12, allows agencies including the CIA, National Security Agency and FBI to collect communications from foreign targets overseas without a warrant.<\/p>\n

US Army helicopter that crashed off the coast of Oman went down after colliding with an Iranian drone, US official says<\/p>\n

A U.S. Army Apache helicopter that crashed off the coast of Oman went down after colliding with an Iranian drone, according a U.S. official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss an ongoing investigation.<\/p>\n

It is not clear whether the collision was intentional, and official statements only said the crash is under investigation. CNN, CBS News and other outlets earlier reported the Iranian drone collision.<\/p>\n

President Donald Trump said Iran shot down the aircraft while it was on patrol over the Strait of Hormuz and declared that the U.S. \u201cmust, of necessity, respond to this attack,\u201d in a post to social media.<\/p>\n

The U.S. military later announced that it had begun strikes against Iran. Iranian state media is reporting that explosions have been heard on Qeshm Island in the Strait of Hormuz.<\/p>\n

\u25b6 Read more<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Jon Gambrell, Darlene Superville, Konstantin Toropin<\/p>\n

US says it has begun strikes against Iran following crash of Army Apache helicopter off Oman coast<\/p>\n

The U.S. military announced that it has begun strikes against Iran following the crash of a U.S. Army Apache helicopter off the coast of Oman.<\/p>\n

In a statement posted to social media, U.S. Central Command said the strikes would be \u201ca proportional response to unjustified Iranian aggression.\u201d<\/p>\n

It comes after President Donald Trump blamed Iran for downing the helicopter and vowed that the U.S. would respond.<\/p>\n

\u25b6 Read more<\/a><\/p>\n

Cuba\u2019s top envoy to US calls Trump\u2019s sanctions on Cuban leaders a \u2018pretext\u2019 for military action<\/p>\n

Recent U.S. sanctions targeting Cuba\u2019s leadership<\/a> and the indictment of former President Ra\u00fal Castro<\/a> are a \u201cpretext\u201d for the Trump administration to persuade the American people to support a military intervention, Cuba\u2019s top diplomat to the United States told The Associated Press.<\/p>\n

In an interview on Tuesday, Ambassador Lianys Torres Rivera repeated accusations against the Trump administration made by other Cuban officials, including the foreign minister and the president, and complained bitterly that the U.S. is targeting Cuban civilians with its decades-old embargo<\/a> and new blockade of energy shipments<\/a> to the island.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe sanctions against our leaders, we see as a pretext to make the American people think we are a threat,\u201d she said at Cuba\u2019s embassy in Washington. \u201cWe are not a threat to the U.S., and we don\u2019t want confrontation.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u25b6 Read more<\/a><\/p>\n

Speaker Johnson says he had a \u2018very productive\u2019 meeting at White House<\/p>\n

Johnson met for several hours with the president as Congress is racing to ensure the FISA foreign surveillance tool does not expire by Friday\u2019s deadline.<\/p>\n

Lawmakers have objected to Trump\u2019s pick of Pulte as director of the office of national intelligence putting the vote to reauthorize FISA at risk.<\/p>\n

Pressed if he believed Pulte was qualified for the job, Johnson said, \u201cWe talked about all that, I\u2019m going to let the president speak.\u201d<\/p>\n

Asked if Trump would dump Pulte, Johnson deferred to the president.<\/p>\n

US tells Europe to step up measures to prevent spread of Ebola virus from Africa<\/p>\n

The Trump administration is telling European nations that they need to step up their travel restrictions for people entering the continent from Ebola virus-hit countries in Africa, warning that failure to do so may result in increased U.S. regulations regarding travel from Europe, including for the World Cup football tournament.<\/p>\n

Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Tuesday called European Commission President Ursala von der Leyen to convey the concerns, \u201cto discuss U.S. and European coordination and response efforts to the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda,\u201d the State Department said in a statement.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe department\u2019s highest priority and focus remain protecting the health of the American people and preventing this Ebola outbreak from reaching our shores,\u201d it said.<\/p>\n

There are relatively few direct flights between Africa and the United State per day but more than 300 direct daily flights between Europe and the United States.<\/p>\n

Trump says US \u2018must\u2019 respond after Iran downed US Army helicopter near Strait of Hormuz<\/p>\n

President Donald Trump blamed Iran<\/a> for downing a U.S. Army helicopter near the Strait of Hormuz<\/a> on Tuesday and said the United States must respond to the attack.<\/p>\n

A drone boat rescued two Army aviators who were aboard the Apache attack helicopter when it went down near the waterway that Iran has effectively closed during its war with the U.S. and Israel. Trump said in a social media post that both service members \u201care safe and uninjured.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNevertheless, the United States must, of necessity, respond to this attack,\u201d Trump wrote.<\/p>\n

The helicopter went down as the Middle East was still reeling after Iran and Israel exchanged fire<\/a> the previous day in the biggest blow yet to the strained ceasefire in the Iran war. Iranian state television reported Tuesday that the Israeli attacks killed at least two members of the country\u2019s air-defense units.<\/p>\n

\u25b6 Read more<\/a><\/p>\n

Melania Trump tells students to \u2018keep using artificial intelligence as a muse\u2019<\/p>\n

The first lady spoke at the White House while recognizing the winners of a nationwide contest in which students were asked to complete a project using an AI method or tool to address a challenge in their communities.<\/p>\n

\u201cToday is about opening doors,\u201d she said. \u201cWhen new doors open, passions flow, courage blossoms and dreams are realized. AI inspires.\u201d<\/p>\n

More than 20,000 students from all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and more than four dozen Defense Department schools in 10 countries participated in the inaugural Presidential AI Challenge.<\/p>\n

Melania Trump recognized six elementary, middle and high school champion teams, along with about 120 finalists.<\/p>\n

The first lady is a proponent of using artificial intelligence in education and also has warned of the risks posed by the technology.<\/p>\n

Trump\u2019s push for healthcare price transparency aims to address a major concern for voters<\/p>\n

The warnings are the latest example of Trump leaning into the message that his administration is fixing the problem of healthcare expenses that can drain a family budget<\/a>. It\u2019s a calculated pitch ahead of the November midterms<\/a> at a time when affordability is a top concern, and Trump is vulnerable on this after allowing subsidies to lapse<\/a> for Affordable Care Act<\/a> insurance, widely known as Obamacare.<\/p>\n

Just 29% of U.S. adults approved of Trump\u2019s healthcare policies in the most recent survey on the issue<\/a> by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Price transparency could have a particular impact in the Republican strongholds of Texas, Florida, Indiana, Alabama and Louisiana, which have among the most hospitals warned about inadequate price information.<\/p>\n

Trump administration warns more than 500 hospitals to provide more price information or face fines<\/p>\n

The administration argues that the lack of basic pricing information<\/a> for consumers to access is keeping healthcare costs<\/a> higher than they should be.<\/p>\n

The Associated Press obtained exclusively the list of hospitals that since April have either received letters of warning or requests to submit plans to provide transparent pricing. Penalties range up to $2 million annually for each hospital that doesn\u2019t create a plan to post clear pricing data.<\/p>\n

The letters are meant to fix a fundamental problem: Patients, employers and insurers might not know ahead of time the cost of blood work, an imaging test or another form of treatment, and as a result pay more than they should have. AP has posted the list of hospitals<\/a> that have received letters.<\/p>\n

\u25b6 Read more<\/a><\/p>\n

House GOP leader says they\u2019re \u2018moving forward\u2019 on passing $70 billion immigration enforcement funds<\/p>\n

Pressed if the Republicans would be able to approve the package during afternoon votes, Majority Leader Steve Scalise appeared confident, despite their already slim advantage potentially being narrowed as lawmakers from several states dash home to campaign on primary election day.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe always have to deal with absences, a narrow majority, that\u2019s life in the big city,\u201d Scalise, the Republican from Louisiana, told reporters.<\/p>\n

Democrats oppose the package, which would fuel Trump\u2019s immigration enforcement and deportation agenda through the rest of his time in the White House.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re just going keep working through but, you know, we\u2019re going to get our work done,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Thune says White House \u2018weighing seriously\u2019 a long-term DNI pick<\/p>\n

Lawmakers in both parties are pressing the White House to reconsider its decision to install Bill Pulte as acting director of national intelligence.<\/p>\n

Senate Majority Leader John Thune said Tuesday he does not believe the administration is considering replacing Pulte in the acting role, and is instead weighing a permanent nominee to lead the intelligence community.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think they\u2019re weighing seriously making a long-term pick,\u201d Thune told reporters.<\/p>\n

Thune added that it\u2019s his \u201chope\u201d the decision would come sooner rather than later.<\/p>\n

Salt Lake City lawsuit is latest against DHS plan to use giant warehouses to detain immigrants<\/p>\n

Salt Lake City and its county are suing to block a giant warehouse where Homeland Security plans to detain as many as 10,000 immigrants. Their federal lawsuit is the latest brought by local officials<\/a> around the country who were not consulted before DHS purchased industrial warehouses to convert into regional immigrant processing and detention centers.<\/p>\n

The lawsuit targets the most expensive yet: $145.4 million for a warehouse roughly the size of 15 football fields. The March purchase, from a real estate group partially owned by Deutsche Bank, cost nearly 50% more than the property\u2019s 2025 assessed market value, records show.<\/p>\n

In all, DHS purchased 11 warehouses for more than $1 billion in the final weeks of Homeland Secretary Kristi Noem\u2019s tenure<\/a>. The DHS Office of Inspector General is investigating whether that was wasteful, and Noem\u2019s successor, DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin<\/a>, has put it on hold<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u25b6 Read more<\/a><\/p>\n

US military says a drone boat brought the 2 helicopter crew members to shore<\/p>\n

A U.S. Navy drone boat rescued two Army aviators after their Apache helicopter went down near the coast of Oman, a U.S. military official said Tuesday.<\/p>\n

Capt. Tim Hawkins, a spokesman for U.S. Central Command, said a 24-foot unmanned boat located the crew members, who had spent two hours in the water, and brought them to shore.<\/p>\n

Military officials have not said what caused the helicopter to go down. The military said the incident is under investigation.<\/p>\n

\u25b6 Read more<\/a><\/p>\n

House Speaker Johnson at White House as US surveillance tool risks a lapse<\/p>\n

Rep. Mike Johnson is meeting with Trump now that the president\u2019s choice of Bill Pulte<\/a> for director of national intelligence has upended debate over extending an expiring foreign surveillance program<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Lawmakers in both parties are pushing the White House to drop Pulte, saying he lacks the congressionally mandated national security expertise.<\/p>\n

Johnson expects the Foreign intelligence Surveillance Act, known as FISA, will be part of the talks.<\/p>\n

FISA is set to expire Friday, risking an interruption of the surveillance tool if Congress fails to extend it.<\/p>\n

Trump says pilots are fine after US helicopter crashes near Strait of Hormuz<\/p>\n

Trump says two U.S. Army members were not injured when their Apache attack helicopter crashed near the Strait of Hormuz<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe pilots are fine,\u201d Trump said after watching the NBA finals in New York Monday night. \u201cNobody injured.\u201d<\/p>\n

What caused the crash remains unclear in a Middle East still reeling after Iran and Israel exchanged fire<\/a> the previous day in the biggest blow yet to the straining ceasefire in the Iran war. Iranian state television reported Tuesday the Israeli attacks killed at least two members of Iran\u2019s defense units.<\/p>\n

A statement from the U.S. military\u2019s Central Command said the crew were rescued within two hours and were in stable condition.<\/p>\n

Trump insists, again, that an Iran deal is coming<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have a good chance\u201d of signing a deal in \u201ctwo or three days,\u201d Trump said Monday night, without providing any detailed reason for new optimism.<\/p>\n

Trump has repeatedly predicted that a deal is near over the two months since the U.S. and Iran agreed to an initial ceasefire. Iranian parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, however, said Monday that Trump\u2019s remarks have \u201ccontradicted the agreed-upon sections, showing that (the U.S. is) neither seeking a ceasefire nor dialogue.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re very close to having a very, very good, strong, powerful deal,\u201d the president said. \u201cIf we go and bomb \u2014 which we could do very easily if we want, and we spend another two or three weeks bombing \u2014 they\u2019ll have nothing left whatsoever. But you won\u2019t have the strait open for months.\u201d<\/p>\n

He added: \u201cIf we do the bombing, you know, a lot of people are going to be killed. Who wants to do that? I don\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n

Trump\u2019s enforcers are poised to ramp up deportations<\/p>\n

The Senate completed its work<\/a> last week, with Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska the only Republican to oppose it. If the House approves, Trump\u2019s signature would all but assure an essentially uninterrupted flow of funds for his immigration enforcement and deportation agenda into 2029.<\/p>\n

The Department of Homeland Security is under new leadership after Trump replaced Kristi Noem<\/a> with new Secretary Markwayne Mullin<\/a>. He has vowed<\/a> to keep the department out of the headlines, but the administration is under pressure from anti-immigration advocates to deliver on Trump\u2019s campaign promise of the largest deportation operation<\/a> in American history.<\/p>\n

So far, the administration has not hit its goal of 1 million deportations a year, but Trump\u2019s border czar, Tom Homan, has promised more to come, including hinting at enforcement in New York, the nation\u2019s biggest city, which is heavily Democratic.<\/p>\n

House Majority leader says ICE funding is long overdue. Top Democrat calls it a blank check<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have to fund border security and immigration enforcement, and it\u2019s sad that Republicans have to do it on our own,\u201d Johnson said.<\/p>\n

The Republican-controlled Congress already provided nearly $140 billion for ICE and Customs and Border Protection as part of Trump\u2019s tax and spending cuts bill<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Democrats wanted significant changes after the deaths of Alex Pretti<\/a> and Renee Good<\/a> in Minneapolis \u2014 insisting for example that agents be required to display their ID badges and get a judicial warrant before entering private property. Instead, the funding will come with virtually no strings attached.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe believe that taxpayer dollars should be used to make life more affordable for the American people \u2013 not give ICE another $70 billion blank check so that they can unleash brutality on American citizens and violently target law-abiding immigrant communities,\u201d House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries said.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

\n \"|\"
Workers continue building the stage for a future UFC fight on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, Sunday, June 7, 2026. (AP Photo\/Rod Lamkey, Jr.)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\n \"|\"
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche testifies before the House Appropriations Committee, Tuesday, June 2, 2026 in Washington. (AP Photo\/Allison Robbert)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The U.S. military said Tuesday it has begun strikes against Iran following the crash of a U.S. Army Apache helicopter off the coast of Oman that U.S. President Donald Trump blamed on the Islamic Republic. The helicopter went down after colliding with an Iranian drone, according to a U.S. official, who spoke to The Associated […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":521,"featured_media":6095,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"guid":"104256ac-581c-4eff-83dc-41a6a525ac0a","source":"The Associated Press","byline":"","published":"2026-06-09 05:28:31","updated":"2026-06-09 16:16:16","_infotelid":"","_prepressid":"","_multisite_post_sync":"","_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[1303,1292,1304],"tags":[],"region":[1301],"class_list":["post-6094","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-international","category-politics","category-world","region-world"],"blocksy_meta":[],"parsely":{"version":"1.1.0","canonical_url":"http:\/\/infonews.ca\/inwheels\/news\/6094\/the-latest-us-military-launches-strikes-against-iran-in-response-to-downing-of-american-helicopter\/","smart_links":{"inbound":0,"outbound":0},"traffic_boost_suggestions_count":0,"meta":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","headline":"The Latest: US military launches strikes against Iran in response to downing of American helicopter","url":"http:\/\/infonews.ca\/inwheels\/news\/6094\/the-latest-us-military-launches-strikes-against-iran-in-response-to-downing-of-american-helicopter\/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"http:\/\/infonews.ca\/inwheels\/news\/6094\/the-latest-us-military-launches-strikes-against-iran-in-response-to-downing-of-american-helicopter\/"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/infonews.ca\/inwheels\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/inwheels-ccfbd8046154cbcbcf88f22a4d12be586e345b4e47448e2bcfca61ae812c1aea.jpg?w=150&h=150&crop=1","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https:\/\/infonews.ca\/inwheels\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/inwheels-ccfbd8046154cbcbcf88f22a4d12be586e345b4e47448e2bcfca61ae812c1aea.jpg"},"articleSection":"International","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"The Associated Press"}],"creator":["The Associated Press"],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"iNwheels","logo":""},"keywords":[],"dateCreated":"2026-06-09T12:28:31Z","datePublished":"2026-06-09T12:28:31Z","dateModified":"2026-06-09T23:30:19Z"},"rendered":"