Iran: US Strike on Civilian Water Network a ’Calculated War Crime’

By Staff, Agencies

Iran has denounced the United States over the targeting of vital civilian water infrastructure in Sirik, Hormozgan Province, describing the attack as a “calculated war crime” and a clear violation of international humanitarian law and human rights principles.

The Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Esmaeil Baghaei, shared footage documenting the damage inflicted by the US attack on critical water facilities in Sirik. In a statement, he slammed the aggression as "deliberately targeting the lifeblood of the Iranian people."

"As part of its aggression against Iran, the US military has deliberately struck vital civilian water infrastructure in Sirik, Hormozgan, destroying two reservoirs with a combined capacity of 2,500 cubic meters," Baghaei said.

The spokesperson detailed that "these facilities supplied drinking water to more than 20,000 residents across ten villages."

He asserted that this is not "collateral damage" but a "calculated war crime and a flagrant violation of human rights and international humanitarian law."

Baghaei demanded that the United States "must be held accountable for committing such systematic brutal attacks on civilian life-sustaining infrastructure."

The attack on water reservoirs in Sirik is the latest in a series of US strikes on Iranian civilian infrastructure during the US-Israeli war on Iran.

Tehran has consistently maintained that such attacks constitute war crimes under international law, as they deliberately target facilities essential for the survival of civilian populations.

Iran has also repeatedly called on international organizations, including the United Nations and the International Criminal Court, to investigate US and Israeli war crimes committed during the aggression on the Islamic Republic.

The destruction of water infrastructure in Sirik has left thousands of residents without access to clean drinking water, further exacerbating the humanitarian impact of the war on Iranian civilians.

US President Donald Trump said in remarks to ABC News that the aggression was part of a response to what he alleged was an attack on an American helicopter.

Trump earlier alleged that Iran shot down an American Apache helicopter over the Strait of Hormuz, adding that both pilots are safe and uninjured, but that the United States "must, of necessity, respond to this attack."

In a post on Truth Social, Trump wrote: "I have just been informed by our Great Military that last night the Iranians shot down one of our highly sophisticated Apache Helicopters while patrolling over the Strait of Hormuz. There were two pilots involved, both are safe and uninjured. Nevertheless, the United States must, of necessity, respond to this attack."

An informed Iranian military source denied that any offensive air operation had been carried out in the Strait of Hormuz over the past 24 hours, rejecting the basis of the US justification.

The source, cited by Iranian media, warned that any further actions taken under such pretexts would be met with a decisive response, amid heightened tensions in the region.