These strikes, part of a week-long campaign during which Tehran attacked US allies in the Middle East, were carried out after a temporary agreement aimed at ending the war with Iran and opening the Strait of Hormuz collapsed.
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The US targeted bridges, electrical facilities, and other targets in Iran, while Tehran responded by striking power plants and desalination facilities in Kuwait, thereby threatening daily life in this small, oil-rich desert state.
Iran also intensified its threats to further expand the strikes, which provoked a warning overnight from the United Arab Emirates (UAE), home to Abu Dhabi and Dubai.
The latest US strikes were carried out after the death of soldiers
The US Central Command also stated in its announcement that it struck “Iranian military coastal surveillance and air defense facilities, naval forces, missile and drone storage sites.”
It also stated for the first time that it specifically targeted the Guard – the main power center of the Iranian theocracy, controlling the country’s ballistic missile arsenal.
Video footage released by the US military shows strikes carried out by fighter jets and sea-launched Tomahawk cruise missiles. One of the targets was in a valley in a mountainous region. The Guard often hides missile bases and other military equipment in mountain ranges.
Iran has not provided any overall information about its material losses during the American campaign, which has been ongoing for eight days, as the countries compete for control of the Strait of Hormuz.
During Iran’s attack on a base in Jordan, two US soldiers were killed, one went missing, and four were hospitalized, the US military reported.
Since the start of the war, 16 US soldiers have died, and more than 430 have been injured.
Iranian officials reported on Saturday that at least 50 people were killed and more than 500 injured in the latest US strikes.
UAE warning
Almost all the Arab countries of the Persian Gulf have become targets of Iran’s retaliatory strikes, and on Saturday, air raid sirens sounded in Saudi Arabia due to missile threats. However, the UAE has not yet been attacked.
The semi-official Iranian news agency Fars, considered close to the Guard, issued a threat to the UAE on Saturday. Citing an official speaking on condition of anonymity, Fars stated that further strikes on Iran’s civilian infrastructure would mean that “Dubai and Abu Dhabi airports, as well as the ports of Fujairah and Jebel Ali, must be evacuated immediately.”
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In response to this threat, the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a statement urging “the utmost restraint to avoid dangerous consequences and the region’s involvement in a new level of violence and instability.”
“The UAE emphasized that targeting civilian infrastructure and civilian objects in the region (…) is a clear and serious violation of established principles and provisions of international law and under no circumstances can be accepted or justified,” the statement added.
Officials said that during the war with Iran, both the UAE and Saudi Arabia have carried out retaliatory air strikes after Tehran targeted their countries.
The Secretary-General of the Gulf Cooperation Council of six countries, Jassem Mohamed al Budaiwi, accused Iran of war crimes for strikes on infrastructure and civilian objects.
The Strait of Hormuz issue
Donald Trump threatened to target Iran’s power plants and bridges to force Tehran to weaken control over the Strait of Hormuz. The recent attacks show that the US military is implementing this plan, starting from Iran’s coastal areas near the strait.
Last week, the US also reimposed a naval blockade on Iranian ports to stop the transport of crude oil, and the military reported on Saturday that since then it has targeted five ships and disabled one.
Iran’s Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei warned in a statement released on Saturday about “unforgettable lessons” if the US continues to attack the Islamic Republic.
An Iranian negotiator stated that Tehran is suspending its commitments under a temporary agreement signed about a month ago aimed at permanently ending the fighting.
The joint Iranian military leadership declared that the US “greed, bullying, totalitarianism, or cruelty” will be met with a “crushing response.”
