The United States today targeted bridges and an airport in Iran, while Tehran responded by attacking a power generation and water desalination plant in Kuwait, risking further escalation by expanding the targets to key infrastructure.
In the disputed Strait of Hormuz, where renewed conflict has once again disrupted global energy supplies from the Middle East, US marines boarded a tanker, while another ship was reported to have been hit by a missile, Reuters reported.
Another ship was intercepted by armed men off the coast of Yemen, but a maritime security source said the incident appeared to be an act of Somali pirates, not an event linked to the conflict between Iran and the United States.
Washington and Tehran have been testing the limits of escalation since their ceasefire agreement collapsed last week, raising the possibility of a return to open war.
US President Donald Trump has threatened to launch large-scale air strikes on Iranian infrastructure and has not ruled out a ground attack on Iran's coast or islands. US officials have said the strikes on southern Iran were partly designed to give Trump more military options.
Such moves carry the risk that Iran will retaliate with attacks on the vital infrastructure of vulnerable neighboring Arab states or that its allies in Yemen will further disrupt global energy supplies by attacking ships in the Red Sea.
Bridges hit in Iran, facilities in Kuwait targeted
In the latest attacks, the US Central Command (CENTCOM) listed "military logistical infrastructure" among the targets it targeted for the first time in more than seven days.
Iranian state media reported that at least five bridges had been hit in the south of the country. The attacks on bridges in the southern port city of Bandar Hamir killed seven people, according to media reports, and a train station was also hit. Further east, in the city of Iranshahr, in a province bordering Pakistan, an airport was also hit.
Reuters could not independently confirm the allegations, which include reports of other deadly attacks, including one in which a woman was killed and her child was wounded in the port of Bandar Abbas.
In response, Iran has announced attacks on Persian Gulf countries hosting US military bases, including Bahrain, Qatar and Kuwait.
Kuwaiti authorities announced that an Iranian attack hit one of the power generation and water desalination plants, damaging the facilities, starting a fire and disrupting the operation of a large number of power generation units.
The wealthy Arab states of the Persian Gulf depend heavily on plants that generate electricity and desalinate seawater to make their desert cities livable. When Iran struck a Kuwaiti desalination plant on March 30, the attack was seen as a major escalation, contributing to the United States' decision to declare the first ceasefire in the war seven days later.
Iran said it had carried out attacks on US military bases in Kuwait, Qatar and Bahrain, as well as a US radar station in Oman. Explosions were heard in the Qatari capital, Doha, where the Interior Ministry said a child was wounded by shrapnel.
Iran also said it had fired missiles at Syria for the first time since the start of the war, targeting what it said was a US special forces base in Tanf. Syria says US forces withdrew from the base earlier this year. A Syrian military source said the missile hit an area near the base but there were no damage or casualties.
The interim agreement to end the war collapsed after July 7, when Iran attacked ships in the Strait of Hormuz and the US responded with air strikes.
The new escalation has pushed the price of benchmark Brent crude up another two percent, to around $86 a barrel, its highest level since a temporary ceasefire was reached a month ago.
Iran announced the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, while Washington reimposed a blockade of Iranian ports.
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