‘Tantamount to a Nuclear Strike’: CNN Analyst Says Attacks on Water Plants Could Escalate Iran War

CNN’s Bill Weir said Friday that strikes on more of the Gulf region’s desalination water plants could seriously escalate the war with Iran.

On CNN News Central, host Jessica Dean brought up the importance of the plants.

“Countries in the region rely on these desalination plants for fresh, clean water, I know,” Dean said. “For example, last weekend, one of those was struck. But what are you hearing when it comes to these plants and the effect on fresh water?” she asked Weir.

“That is a such a key concern right now because so much of the Persian Gulf they live on desalinated water,” Weir said, continuing:

This is a process that takes a lot of energy to take seawater, push the salt out of it either through a membrane or by heating it up. Something like 90% of the fresh water in places like Kuwait and Oman is desalinated. Seventy percent in Saudi Arabia.

There was that attack on one in Bahrain, but it didn’t affect drinking water supplies. The problem is, a lot of these plants are next to other infrastructures, so they could be collateral damage. But attacking a nation’s water is seen in this region as tantamount to a nuclear strike. If that happens, if we see deliberate action against drinking water, that would take it to a new level.

The Quincy Institute’s Responsible Statecraft publication echoed Weir’s concerns.

“Over the weekend, airstrikes targeted water desalination plants in Iran and Bahrain, threatening a vital life source in one of the most water-scarce regions in the world,” the report said. “Analysts said that this development was not only a ‘serious escalation’ in the Iran war, but also an indication that the conflict could have a wider civilian impact.”

Iran’s foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, called the attack “a dangerous move with grave consequences” on social media and “accused the U.S. of setting a precedent,” Responsible Statecraft reported.

A spokesman for U.S. Central Command denied that the U.S. was behind the desalination plant attack on Iran’s Qeshm Island, the report said.

Watch the clip above via CNN.

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