Kuwait says soldiers injured, power plant damaged in Iranian attacks
Kuwait, July 17
Several members of Kuwait's armed forces were injured and a power generation and water desalination plant was damaged on Friday in Iranian attacks, Kuwaiti authorities said.
The soldiers were injured by "hostile" drone attacks, which targeted "several facilities and camps affiliated with the Kuwaiti Army this morning," the army said on social media platform X.
It did not disclose the number or severity of the injuries.
Earlier on Friday, Kuwait's Ministry of Electricity, Water and Renewable Energy said on X that an Iranian attack struck a power generation and water desalination plant in the country, triggering a fire and causing extensive damage to the facility, Xinhua news agency reported.
Firefighting teams had brought the blaze under control, while technical crews were working to repair the damaged units and restore them to service, said the ministry.
It urged residents to conserve electricity during what it called an "exceptional period."
Separately, Kuwait's Foreign Ministry condemned the attacks as a violation of the country's sovereignty and international law, warning they risked further destabilising the region and reaffirming Kuwait's right to protect its security.
The development came amid heightened regional tensions despite a peace memorandum of understanding signed by the United States and Iran in mid-June, under which they were expected to hold negotiations within 60 days toward a final agreement.
Meanwhile, the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) said on Friday that it carried out retaliatory strikes against the US special operations command centre in Syria, American weapons depots and launchers in Kuwait, and radar sites in Oman, local media reported.
In a statement, the IRGC said that the operations had started during the 11th, 12th and 13th waves of Operation Nasr-2. According to the statement, the 11th wave was dedicated to the deceased soldiers of Bampur in Iranshahr, adding that the forces, during this operation, carried out a surprise strike on the US special forces command centre in Syria's al-Tanf region, Iran's official Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA) reported.
In a separate statement, the IRGC's Public Relations Department said that Iranian forces had started retaliatory strikes, the first of which struck a missile defence surveillance radar, several US weapons depots, two HIMARS launchers, and several missiles, causing a large fire at a base hosting the US forces in Kuwait.'
— IANS
Reader Comments
Why are innocent soldiers and a power plant being targeted? This is pure aggression from Iran 😡. The US-Iran peace deal seems like a joke now. We have thousands of Indians in Kuwait, and this puts them at risk too. Hope the Indian government is monitoring the situation closely.
This is a clear violation of Kuwait's sovereignty. Iran's IRGC claims to strike US assets in Kuwait, but it's Kuwaiti soil that's being damaged and its people who are suffering. The international community must condemn this strongly. India should use its diplomatic channels to de-escalate.
From a security perspective, this is a worrying trend. The IRGC's claims of hitting US targets in Kuwait, Oman, and Syria show they're willing to expand the conflict. The peace deal was supposed to bring calm, but this looks more like a strategic provocation. Let's hope diplomacy works before things spiral.
India should support Kuwait's right to defend itself. We have strong ties with both Iran and the Gulf nations, so we can play a role in mediation. But this attack on a power plant affecting civilians is just wrong. That's basic infrastructure that people depend on, not a military target.
It's hard to believe this is happening after the US-Iran memorandum. The IRGC's actions seem to be undermining the peace process deliberately. Kuwait is a small nation caught in the middle of a bigger power struggle. I hope the injured soldiers recover soon and the plant is repaired quickly.
We welcome thoughtful discussions from our readers. Please keep comments respectful and on-topic.