The United States has intensified its aerial campaign against Iran, hitting bridges, ports, and energy facilities as part of an expanded military operation. On Friday, American airstrikes struck bridges in Iran's southern Hormozgan province that serve as key transit points for Bandar Abbas, the nation's main port. The strikes killed at least seven people according to Iranian state television.
Additional US attacks targeted infrastructure at Chabahar port on the Gulf of Oman, where the military claimed the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps used facilities to coordinate attacks on vessels in the Strait of Hormuz. The campaign also struck electrical infrastructure and Iranshahr airport. Following the strikes on power facilities, Iran's energy ministry urged citizens to reduce electricity consumption as the power grid experienced strain, with the southern regions facing extreme heat compounded by damage to power infrastructure.
The strikes represent a significant escalation in scope. Human rights experts have warned that attacks on civilian infrastructure not used for military purposes could constitute war crimes. By Friday morning, Iranian health ministry spokesperson Hossein Kermanpour reported that renewed US strikes had killed at least 38 people and wounded more than 400.
The expanded campaign appears connected to President Donald Trump's stated intention to target Iranian infrastructure and power plants. Reports indicate Trump met with senior department officials this week to discuss an aerial campaign aimed at forcing Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, a critical waterway that handles approximately one-fifth of the world's oil and gas supply before the conflict began.
The fighting has now entered its seventh consecutive day and has undermined an interim deal signed between the countries last month intended to keep the strait open for negotiations toward a permanent truce. Iran has shut the strait while the US reimposed a blockade of Iranian ports and ships as of Wednesday.
In response to Friday's strikes, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps warned of a "devastating price" for countries hosting US military bases if attacks on infrastructure continued. Iran subsequently targeted multiple US allies across the region, striking Bahrain, Kuwait, Jordan, Oman, and Qatar. In Kuwait, strikes damaged a power and desalination plant that supplies approximately 90 percent of the nation's drinking water.
The fighting has disrupted global shipping significantly. Cargo shipments through the Strait of Hormuz dropped by nearly a quarter at the month's beginning. A tanker traveling near Oman came under attack on Friday, sustaining minor damage though no crew were injured. Iranian state media reported the US also struck an empty oil tanker docked at Kharg Island, Iran's primary oil export terminal.
The escalating violence has driven up fuel prices in the United States, with diesel reaching over five dollars per gallon and regular gasoline approaching four dollars, nearly a dollar and a quarter higher than a year ago.