The United States has intensified military operations against Iran. The US destroyed several bridges, power lines and a key port tower in Iran on Friday night. US President Donald Trump has threatened to attack Iranian infrastructure to reduce Iran’s dominance in the Strait of Hormuz. Iran has also launched new missile attacks targeting US allies in the Middle East. Iran also attacked Qatar, a mediator in the war. It also severely damaged a vital water purification project in Kuwait, which the desert country desperately needed.
A cease-fire agreement between the two countries was already broken last month, and now there is a series of attacks between the US and Iran over control of the Strait of Hormuz. Iranian official sources said at least 38 people were killed in the US attack, and Iran closed the Strait of Hormuz to shipping after the US and Israel declared war on Iran on 28 February. This pushed crude oil prices around the world and allowed Iran to exert its influence in the negotiations. In his address to the American people, President Trump claimed that the victory of the United States in this war is certain and everyone will soon see the results.
US warplanes destroyed several bridges in Iran’s southern Hormozgan province and Bandar Nagar Khamir. The attack was aimed at cutting off the road from Iran’s main port, Bandar Abbas, to the capital, Tehran. It is expected to disrupt the supply of essential goods to about 90 million people in Iran. Iran’s energy ministry also acknowledged the attack on electricity infrastructure for the first time and urged the general public to use less electricity. The US also destroyed a large tower in Iran’s Chabahar port in the Gulf of Oman. The port of Chabahar, which is operated in collaboration with India, is an important trade route for neighboring Afghanistan.
Iran retaliated by firing a series of missiles into Qatar, prompting the Qatari government to issue two warnings to civilians seeking refuge. A child was also injured when the missile was destroyed in the air. Both Qatar and Pakistan were acting as mediators to end the war, but talks over the Strait of Hormuz failed. Iran also attacked Bahrain and Kuwait. Kuwait’s water treatment plant, the main source of drinking water, was attacked. Parallel missile attacks were also reported in Jordan and northern Iraq, killing at least nine people. A British oil tanker passing through the Strait of Hormuz was also attacked.