Trump’s threats of targeting water plants in Iran, a potential war crime, alarm Gulf allies | CNN Politics

After President Donald Trump floated on Monday the possibility of expanding the Iran war by potentially striking water treatment plants in Iran, some Gulf countries reiterated grave concerns to the Trump administration about any strikes on civilian infrastructure and the risk of an intensifying tit-for-tat escalation, according to four regional sources. Civilian infrastructure sites like water plants are clearly banned as targets by international law, but throughout the war following US and Israeli strikes, Iran has retaliated against US allies in the Gulf region, many of whom rely heavily on desalination to provide water for citizens due to few fresh water sources. If Iran responded to a US strike on a water plant by hitting a similar facility in a nearby country, it could trigger devastating consequences. “It will be a huge catastrophe if they strike, we rely on desalination for almost all drinking water,” said one regional official, explaining that the concerns about pursuing these strikes have been clearly articulated to Trump administration officials in the past and were reiterated after Trump’s Truth Social post on Monday. While several countries have privately reached