US forces struck multiple bridges, a communications tower and an airport in southern and southeastern Iran on Friday in a significant expansion of the air campaign beyond military targets, as Iran threatened to destroy every last piece of infrastructure in the region if the United States continued striking civilian infrastructure.
The Kohurestan Bridge and the Giriyeh Bridge near Bandar Abbas were both struck, dropping sections into the Shur River and completely blocking the Bandar Abbas-Khamir-Lar road connecting the strategic port city to Shiraz, Iran’s Fars news agency reported.
Two people were killed and four wounded in the bridge strikes. A separate US strike hit a communications tower in Bandar Abbas, injuring seven civilians and damaging nearby residential buildings. Three powerful explosions were also heard near Iranshahr Airport in Sistan and Baluchestan province after US warplanes struck the facility. A major railway station west of Bandar Abbas linking the Shahid Rajaei port to Iran’s national rail network was also hit.
The IRGC warned that any further infrastructure strikes would trigger the destruction of all infrastructure in every country in the region assisting the United States. The Houthis simultaneously warned they would close the Bab el-Mandeb strait in response. Iran fired drones at Jordan, and Kuwait said it intercepted 32 Iranian drones on Thursday night alone.
US Central Command said Marines from the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit boarded the Wen Yao tanker in the Gulf of Oman to verify blockade compliance. Three vessels attempting to breach the blockade have been diverted, one disabled after failing to obey instructions and one inspected.
