Airstrike knocks out key Iran desalination plant on Qeshm Island, makes it ‘completely out of service’

A desalination plant on Iran’s Qeshm Island in the strategic Strait of Hormuz has been rendered inoperable following an airstrike, Iranian media reported on Tuesday (March 31, 2026), amid escalating hostilities in the region.

According to the ISNA news agency, the facility was “completely out of service” and could not be repaired in the short term. The report cited Health Ministry official Mohsen Farhadi but did not specify when the strike occurred.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi had earlier said that a strike targeted Qeshm on March 7, accusing the US of carrying out a “blatant and desperate crime” from its military base in Bahrain. Qeshm, the largest Iranian island in the Gulf, stretches roughly 100 km across the Strait of Hormuz, a vital global energy corridor. While the island has gained popularity as a tourist destination in recent years, known for its UNESCO-listed rock formations and clear waters, analysts note it is also heavily militarised.

The reported strike is part of a broader pattern of attacks on desalination facilities since the conflict began on February 28 following US-Israeli strikes on Iran. Regional tensions have since intensified with retaliatory actions. Bahrain reported an Iranian strike on a facility on March 8, which appeared to be in response to the Qeshm attack a day earlier. Kuwait also said on Monday (March 30) that an Iranian strike hit a desalination and electricity plant, an allegation Tehran denied, instead blaming Israel.

The targeting of desalination infrastructure has raised concerns across West Asia, one of the world’s driest regions, where such facilities are critical for water supply. Desalinated water accounts for a significant share of drinking water across the Gulf - including about 42 per cent in the United Arab Emirates, 70 per cent in Saudi Arabia, 86 per cent in Oman, and 90 per cent in Kuwait, according to a 2022 report by the French Institute of International Relations.

US President Donald Trump on Monday (March 30) warned that Washington could escalate its campaign further, threatening to “obliterate” Iran’s power infrastructure, oil facilities and “possibly all desalination plants.”