Iran's grim order after US strikes 'hit power plants'

Sign up HERE to our DC Insider newsletter - your guide to what's rocking Washington, rattling the White House and setting tongues wagging on the Hill See more Daily Mail on Google - save us as a Preferred SourceBy PHILLIP NIETO, US POLITICAL REPORTER Published: 13:38 BST, 17 July 2026 | Updated: 15:32 BST, 17 July 2026

Iran has told its citizens to turn off their air conditioning during peak hours as the country's power grid came under strain amid US strikes.Tehran's Ministry of Energy said in a statement that the power restrictions were necessary 'to help ensure a stable electricity supply in the southern provinces, which are currently facing extreme heat and attacks on electricity supply facilities.' Temperatures in the capital were expected to hit triple digits Friday with highs of 102F on Saturday and Sunday.Trump ordered the US military to hit Iranian bridges throughout coastal cities along the Strait of Hormuz. A report from Iranian state media claims an American missile struck in the vicinity of Qeshm, while other reports said location around the island were hit by projectiles. The US also fired on a ship accused of trying to break the naval blockade.Trump has threatened to broaden the campaign to Iran's power plants and bridges unless Tehran returns to talks, warning in a Fox News interview that attacks would intensify next week.Iran answered by vowing to hit infrastructure across the region if the US follows through, and it asked Yemen's Houthis to prepare to close the Bab el-Mandeb Strait if American forces strike Iranian power infrastructure.The conflict spiraled last night as Iran targeted Kuwait's drinking water and power plants with drone and missiles after Donald Trump caused widespread chaos throughout Iran with devastating attacks on their bridges and airports.Kuwait is an oil-rich desert nation where everyday life depends on desalination plants, which produce about 90 percent of the country's drinking water by converting seawater from the Gulf. The US has carried out several waves of strikes against Iran over the last week Authorities said several power-generation units were damaged in the attack, but that firefighters had brought the resulting blaze under control.Iran has repeatedly menaced Washington's Gulf allies with drone and missile barrages since the war erupted in late February, Thursday's attack was the first time Tehran has targeted power infrastructure. In response, Kuwait's government has urged residents to ration electricity to ease the strain on the national grid at the height of summer as soaring temperatures push demand to its annual peak, according to Bloomberg. It is unclear if civilians have had their power cut off following Iran's attack. Just hours prior, Trump directed the US military to hit Iranian bridges throughout coastal cities along the Strait of Hormuz.Iranian officials reported Thursday explosions in Bandar Abbas and two blasts in Bushehr, home to Iran's largest civilian nuclear plant. The US said its forces struck Iranian command centers, air defense sites, missile and drone capabilities, and coastal surveillance facilities tied to the battle over the Strait of Hormuz.American forces also tightened the blockade with Marines boarding a vessel in the Gulf of Oman. Iran has responded to US attack by targetting American bases and US allies in the Middle East Iran has repeatedly menaced Washington's Gulf allies with drone and missile barrages since the war erupted in late February In response, Kuwait's government has urged residents to ration electricity to ease the strain on the national grid Just hours prior, Trump directed the US military to hit Iranian bridges throughout coastal cities along the Strait of HormuzThe military also redirected three commercial ships trying to run the blockade and disabled another.As a result of the attack, Iran has responded in the last week by targeting US airbases in Jordan with ballistic missiles in response to an American attack near a children's facility.Earlier in the week Tehran claimed responsibility for drone strikes on fuel tanks, a Patriot system, a watchtower and an ammunition depot at a US base in Kuwait, and striking Bahrain. The Strait of Hormuz remains the heart of the conflict, a narrow waterway responsible for one-fifth of global oil. Iran has tried to assert control over the waterway and opened fire on ships after Trump reimposed his blockade.The renewed fighting has been deadly, killing at least 30 people since last week, while oil prices have spiked sharply.All of this falls under the wider 2026 Iran war, a conflict that broke out in late February with massive US-Israeli strikes on Iran.