US expands strike targets in Iran amid escalating conflict
The United States has broadened its air campaign against Iran, adding bridges, water facilities and interior military sites to its list of targets as fighting over the Strait of Hormuz intensifies.
The United States has widened the scope of its air strikes against Iran, moving beyond coastal defenses to hit bridges, tunnels, water infrastructure and deeper-lying military installations. The campaign follows a brief cease-fire in June and a renewed battle for control of the Strait of Hormuz, which carries a large share of global oil shipments.
Initial attacks focused on Iran’s navy and coastal radar sites in the provinces of Khuzestan, Bushehr and Hormozgan, as well as the port city of Bandar Abbas. In the latest phase, U.S. forces have struck at least six bridges, a tunnel, a railway junction and several communications towers, temporarily disrupting transport and telecom links in the south.
Infrastructure in the Persian Gulf region has also been targeted, including a fish-meal factory on Qeshm Island, a power grid in Khuzestan and a water-desalination plant in Jask that supplies roughly 10,000 residents. A border crossing with Iraq was hit, resulting in civilian casualties.
According to the U.S. military, the strikes aim to degrade Iran’s ability to threaten vessels in the strait. President Donald Trump warned that each Iranian attack on shipping would be met with hits on power plants or bridges.
Iran has responded with increased attacks on ships in the strait and on Gulf-based facilities housing U.S. forces, killing at least four American soldiers. Israel has not been targeted in this round of fighting.
"For every Iranian attack on the strait, a power plant or bridge will be hit," President Trump said.
The Iranian Health Ministry reports more than 3,400 deaths since the conflict began, with 55 occurring during the recent escalation. Both sides continue to exchange strikes, raising concerns of a broader regional war.