Trump threatens Iran with attacks on bridges and power plants for every ship strike

Background of the escalation

According to Trump's account, US strikes on Iranian targets hit the country hard. The country would need decades for reconstruction. Just on Tuesday, he had again threatened US strikes on the area around the Iranian nuclear facility known as "Pickaxe Mountain." Previously, the Republican had threatened a corresponding attack on the mountain Kuh-e Kolang, located south of the Natanz nuclear facility in central Iran.

"We will target this area very soon, and with full force," he said at the White House. Trump also stressed that the US military would target every facility that the leadership in Tehran wants to use for nuclear purposes. This significantly sharpens the tone of the US President toward Tehran once again.

In response, Iran again launched retaliatory strikes against targets in the Gulf states allied with Washington: Kuwait, Bahrain, and Qatar. Previously, the US military had announced the deaths of three additional US soldiers following Iranian shelling. The officially known number of US military personnel killed in the war has now risen to 18.

Iran's retaliatory strikes and own losses

"Every time Iran kills an American soldier, it will pay for that death many times over!" he wrote on his platform Truth Social. "Honestly, they have seen nothing so far. We have been nice," he claimed in the presence of journalists and politicians. These statements underscore the increasingly confrontational stance of the US government.

The US military stated in the meantime that it had struck dozens of "military targets" with precision munitions, including air defense systems and coastal surveillance radar installations. The strikes on bridges were intended to interrupt supply routes to an Iranian naval base on the Strait of Hormuz, the "Wall Street Journal" reported, citing a US official.

Military targets and reports of bridge strikes

Already last week, media had reported on US military attacks on several bridges and an airport in Iran. There has been no official confirmation of this so far. The US military has been attacking targets in Iran for days.

Iran's UN ambassador had declared that US attacks on civilian infrastructure constituted war crimes. UN Secretary-General António Guterres also expressed, through a spokesperson, concern about attacks on civilian infrastructure in Iran and throughout the region. "Such attacks are unacceptable."

International reactions

On the duration of the war, Trump said: "If we left tomorrow, we would have recorded a huge success. But we will not leave tomorrow." This statement indicates that, despite its own losses, the US government is not seeking a swift end to the fighting. The escalation spiral between the two states thus continues to turn.

The threat to deliberately target civilian infrastructure such as bridges and power plants marks a qualitative intensification of the conflict. Until now, the United States had named primarily military facilities and nuclear installations as targets. The expansion to civilian objects as a retaliatory measure represents a break with previous statements by the US government.

International observers and diplomats are expressing concern about the possible consequences of such a strategy. The Strait of Hormuz is one of the world's most important shipping routes, through which a significant share of global oil transport is handled. Any further escalation in this region would therefore have immediate effects on the world economy.

Outlook on the further course of the conflict

The reaction of the Gulf states to Iran's retaliatory strikes was initially wait-and-see. Kuwait, Bahrain, and Qatar are close allies of Washington, but also host American military bases. An open conflict between Iran and these states could drag the entire Persian Gulf region into the fallout.

Analysts point out that Trump's threats can be interpreted both as a pressure tool in possible negotiations and as preparation for further military steps. The simultaneous emphasis on wanting to target every nuclear facility of Tehran points to a long-term confrontation strategy.

With the latest announcement, concern is growing about an expansion of the war to additional countries in the region. The combination of targeted strikes on infrastructure, retaliatory strikes in third states, and the threat of full force against nuclear installations raises fears that the spiral of violence will continue to gain momentum.

The coming days will show whether the diplomatic channels between Washington and Tehran still function or whether the conflict will be waged entirely by military means. International mediation efforts, for instance through the United Nations, face enormous challenges, as both sides appear to be further entrenching their maximalist positions.