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The United States struck bridges in Iran, and Tehran responded by striking an energy and desalination plant in Kuwait on Friday, as the two sides risked escalation by expanding their targets to include infrastructure.
At sea, as the renewed war has once again cut off electricity in the Gulf, US Marines have boarded a tanker near the Strait of Hormuz. Armed men have seized another ship from Yemen, raising concerns about the security of another major Middle Eastern oil shipping bottleneck at the mouth of the Red Sea.
Iran’s official Tasnim news agency reported late Friday that the Revolutionary Guards Navy had “targeted” a Thai-flagged ship that was trying to pass through the Strait of Hormuz. It did not provide further details.
Washington and Tehran have been testing the limits of escalation since their ceasefire agreement collapsed last week, raising the prospect of a return to endless war.
After reports of an increase on Friday, Brent crude oil prices rose 3 percent and were on course for a third consecutive weekly gain, putting political pressure on US President Donald Trump ahead of November’s congressional elections.
US air strike threats are on the rise
Trump has threatened to launch air strikes against Iran’s infrastructure and has refused to ban ground attacks on Iran’s coast or islands. US officials said the attack on southern Iran was designed in part to give Trump options.
Such measures are dangerous for Iran to escalate by attacking the critical infrastructure of vulnerable Arab neighboring states, or having its allies in Yemen disrupt global energy supplies by attacking shipping from the Red Sea.
Mohsen Rezaei, an adviser to Iran’s supreme leader, warned on Friday about US escalation and any attempt to seize Iranian territory.
“If the American strikes continue for a few more days, we will enter a phase of total harassment,” Rezaei, a former commander of the Revolutionary Guards, told state television.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres is concerned about this increase, especially with “attacks on the infrastructure of the people of Iran and the entire region,” his spokesman said.
The U.S. military’s Central Command previously said its targets include “military infrastructure,” the first time it has mentioned infrastructure in more than a week. In the latest strikes, the Central Command said it resumed its attack on Iran for the seventh night in a row at 3 pm ET or 10:30 pm in Tehran.
5 bridges hit south: Iranian media
Iranian media earlier said at least five bridges were hit in the south. It was reported that seven people were killed in the attack on the bridges in the southern port of Bandar Khamir, where the train station was hit. The airport was reportedly hit east and offshore in Iranshahr, a province bordering Pakistan.
Videos verified by Reuters show debris, broken steel and a damaged car on the collapsed bridge in Bandar Khamir. One clip showed the fire.
Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said three civilians died when they crossed the Bandar Khamir Bridge, adding that Iran will not let their blood “go in vain.”
Iran has announced attacks on Gulf countries that host US airports, including Bahrain, Qatar and Kuwait, in addition to an American ship in the northern Indian Ocean.
Iran’s navy fired a surface-to-surface missile at what it called a hostile American ship in the northern Indian Ocean, IRNA news agency reported on Friday. Iran’s military said the missile fire had caused “fear and panic” and forced the ship out of the Iranian navy’s range.
The authorities of Kuwait said that one of the electricity and water generating stations in the country was attacked by Iran, which caused damage, a fire broke out and many power generating units were disrupted.
In June, CBC’s senior international reporter Margaret Evans and videographer Lyza Sale were granted rare access to report inside Iran. Where they could go and what they could report on was tightly controlled, but Iranian authorities had no editorial influence on content and were not given access to CBC News material before it was published.
The wealthy Arab Gulf countries depend on plants that generate electricity and desalinate seawater to make their desert cities livable. When Iran struck a desalination plant in Kuwait on March 30, it was seen as a major escalation.
The Kuwaiti military said the explosions caused injuries in several areas but there were no casualties while Kuwaiti soldiers were injured in Iranian strikes on military facilities.
The country has been facing ballistic missile and drone attacks since morning, and the military has intercepted them, the military said.
Last month’s temporary ceasefire agreement has been in tatters since July 7, when Iran rammed ships in the Strait of Hormuz and the United States responded with airstrikes. Iran has since announced the closure of the strait, and Washington has reinstated its blockade of Iranian ports.
