By Parisa Hafezi and Angus McDowall
DUBAI, July 20 (Reuters) - Opposition to Iran's clerical rulers has long simmered in the country's impoverished south. But after bearing the brunt of U.S. strikes this month, many residents are directing their anger at President Donald Trump and an air campaign they say has upended their lives.
Southern Iran, which borders the Strait of Hormuz, has been a major target of U.S. attacks on ports, energy facilities and transport infrastructure. Washington says the strikes are aimed at curbing Iran's ability to threaten shipping through the strategic waterway. Tehran says they have gone far beyond legitimate military targets.
Most of the more than two dozen southern residents Reuters interviewed by phone or messaging apps agreed that the strikes had gone beyond targets with a clear military purpose.
"Trump has ruined our lives more than the Islamic rulers did," said Amin, who runs a small boarding house for tourists in the south, blaming the U.S. strikes for worsening economic hardship.
