U.S. Hits Iran Bridges; Iran Strikes U.S. Bases in Gulf
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- U.S. military struck Iranian air defenses, military logistics, six bridges in Hormozgan province, and power infrastructure on Friday, with President Trump having threatened bridge strikes earlier in the week if Iran failed to return to talks.
- Iran's Revolutionary Guard retaliated by firing missiles and drones at Kuwait, Bahrain, and Oman — all hosts of U.S. military bases — and claimed to have attacked U.S. special forces at the former al-Tanf outpost in Syria, a claim CENTCOM had not immediately addressed.
- Iranian state media reported at least seven killed and 20 wounded in the latest strikes, with cumulative tolls of 38 killed and over 400 wounded across the past week; legal scholars warned attacks on dual-use civilian infrastructure could constitute war crimes under international law.
- U.S. forces destroyed a maritime control tower at the Iranian port of Chabahar on the Gulf of Oman, with Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth sharing a photo of the collapse on social media.
- The U.S. military blockade on Iranian ports, reinstated earlier this week, has so far redirected three vessels, struck and disabled one oil tanker that disobeyed orders, and boarded another.
- Oil prices jumped 10% this week as the escalation reignited fears of an all-out war over control of the Strait of Hormuz, which Iran has shut since the U.S. and Israel began the war on Feb. 28.
Why it matters: The widening of strikes to bridges, power, and port infrastructure on both sides raises civilian costs and pulls Gulf host nations deeper into the fight, with Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, Jordan, and Iraq's Kurdistan now actively intercepting Iranian fire. With oil up 10% and Iran vowing to hit 'infrastructure of U.S. allies,' what was framed as a bilateral blockade enforcement is now a regional exchange hitting civilian facilities, including water supply in the Gulf.
