Strait of Hormuz Crisis: Iran accuses U.S. of killing 5 civilians in helicopter strike

Tensions in the Strait of Hormuz reached a breaking point on May 5, 2026, as Iran accused U.S. forces of killing five civilian passengers in a helicopter strike.

The semi-official Tasnim news agency, citing a military source, reported that an investigation was launched “following the false claim by the US military that it had targeted 6 Iranian speedboats.”

The source claimed that because “none of the IRGC combat vessels had been hit,” authorities looked into local reports.

They found that American forces had actually fired on two small boats carrying consumer goods from Khasab, Oman, toward Iran.

The military source described the attack as a “hasty and clumsy” move alleging it was driven by the “excessive fear and nightmare of the US military regarding the IRGC’s fast-boat operations.”

Washington offered a sharply different account.

U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) stated that its helicopters destroyed the vessels because they were “threatening commercial shipping” and attempting to interfere with maritime traffic.

This clash follows a week of escalating violence after the U.S. enforce a naval blockade on April 13.

While the U.S maintains it is protecting “Project Freedom” to keep trade lanes open, Tehran has labeled the strike a “crime” for which the Americans “must certainly be held accountable.