US ‘attacks’ water desalination plant on Qeshm island

TEHRAN: Iran’s Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi on Saturday accused the United States on Saturday of targeting a freshwater desalination plant on Qeshm Island, resulting in water disruption to more than two dozen villages.

Seyed Abbas Araghchi wrote in his post uploaded on post X, “The US committed a blatant and desperate crime by attacking a freshwater desalination plant on Qeshm Island.”

The X statement said, “Water supply in 30 villages has been impacted. Attacking Iran’s infrastructure is a dangerous move with grave consequences,” he further stated, warning that “the US set this precedent, not Iran.”

The U.S. committed a blatant and desperate crime by attacking a freshwater desalination plant on Qeshm Island. Water supply in 30 villages has been impacted.

Attacking Iran's infrastructure is a dangerous move with grave consequences. The U.S. set this precedent, not Iran.

— Seyed Abbas Araghchi (@araghchi) March 7, 2026

At the same time, multiple explosions were reported in the state’s capital, Tehran, following the Israeli military’s announcement that it had carried out a new strike.

Several blasts occurred across Tehran, according to local reports, with explosions taking place shortly after the Israeli military said it had launched a fresh wave of attacks.

Earlier, in a post uploaded on Truth Social, US President Donald Trump warned that Iran would be “hit very hard”, signalling a potential expansion of US military strikes as the war between Iran, Israel and the United States entered its second week.

The threat came as Israeli and US strikes continued to pound Iranian military facilities and infrastructure, while Iran launched missiles and drones at Israel and US interests across the Middle East.

The remarks came after Iran issued an apology to neighbouring Arab countries, with President Masoud Pezeshkian saying that the country’s neighbours will not be targeted unless attacks originate from their territory.

“I personally apologise to neighbouring countries that were affected by Iran’s actions,” the Iranian president said.

Regarding this, Trump added, “Iran, which is being beaten to hell, has apologised and surrendered to its Middle East neighbours, and promised that it will not shoot at them anymore.”

“Iran is no longer the ‘Bully of the Middle East.’ They are, instead, ‘THE LOSER OF THE MIDDLE EAST,’ and will be for many decades until they surrender or, more likely, completely collapse,” Trump said.

“This promise was only made because of the relentless US and Israeli attack. They were looking to take over and rule the Middle East. It is the first time that Iran has ever lost, in thousands of years, to surrounding Middle Eastern countries,” he added.

ما به کشورهای دوست و همسایه خود حمله نکرده‌ایم بلکه پایگاه ها، تاسیسات و امکانات نظامی آمریکا در منطقه را هدف قرار داده ایم.

— Masoud Pezeshkian (@drpezeshkian) March 7, 2026

Iran describes its retaliation on the US-Israel joint attacks as an act undertaken as per self-defence, saying that their response aimed at hitting back at Israel and US military installations residing in Gulf countries.

Meanwhile, Middle East countries, including the UAE, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain and Saudi Arabia, have all reported a huge number of drone and missile attacks over the past week.

Regarding this, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said Iran’s temporary leadership council had approved suspending attacks on nearby countries, unless an attack on Iran came from those nations.

جمهوری اسلامی ایران بر حفظ و تداوم روابط دوستانه با دولت های منطقه بر مبنای حسن همجواری و احترام متقابل به حاکمیت ملی و تمامیت سرزمینی همواره تاکید دارد. این امر نافی حق ذاتی ایران برای دفاع از خود در برابر تجاوز نظامی آمریکا و رژیم صهیونیستی نیست.

— Masoud Pezeshkian (@drpezeshkian) March 7, 2026

He added that Iran has consistently emphasised maintaining and strengthening friendly relations with regional governments as their goal is to create a good atmosphere with their neighbours, and that based on mutual respect for national sovereignty and territorial integrity. However, he added that they should not forget that Iran owns an inherent right when it comes to defending its sovereignty against military aggression by the United States and Israel.