Iranian minister says ‘heavy damage’ to water, energy infrastructure from US-Israeli strikes

Iran’s critical water and energy infrastructure have suffered extensive damage due to US and Israeli strikes on tens of thousands of civilian sites, regime officials say.

“The country’s vital water and electricity infrastructure has suffered heavy damage following terrorist and cyber attacks by the United States and the Zionist regime,” says energy minister Abbas Aliabadi, according to Iran’s ISNA news agency. “The attacks targeted dozens of water transmission and treatment facilities and destroyed parts of critical water supply networks,” he noted, adding that efforts were under way to repair the damage.

Iran’s Red Crescent chief Pirhossein Kolivand says the total number of damaged civilian sites “has reached 81,365 based on the latest field assessments.”

He says the figure includes residential and commercial units, schools, medical centers and vehicles.

AFP has not been able to access sites or verify the figures outside of the Iranian capital, but journalists in Tehran have reported damage to multiple residential buildings and other civilian infrastructure. More than 1,200 Iranians have been killed in US and Israeli strikes, according to the latest toll from Iran’s health ministry on March 8, which could not be independently verified.

Today, ISNA reports that strikes damaged a hospital in the southern city of Ahvaz, in Khuzestan province.

Since the war began on February 28, 15 civilians and foreign nationals have been killed in Israel in Iranian missile attacks, along with four Palestinians in the West Bank. A civilian and two soldiers have been killed in Hezbollah attacks.