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U.S. Strikes Leave Iranians Isolated and Scared

Overnight strikes damaged a tunnel and three bridges in Hormozgan Province, the governor’s office said.

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By Leily Nikounazar

July 18, 2026

U.S. airstrikes targeting parts of southern Iran have rattled Iranians’ nerves this week, they said in interviews, and destroyed key links between one province and the rest of the country.

Marzieh, a resident of the port city of Bandar Abbas, said that she had heard from friends that the roads around the city had been “devastated.” Marzieh and other Iranians interviewed gave only their first names for fear of government reprisal.

Overnight strikes damaged a tunnel and three bridges, the Hormozgan governor’s office said on Saturday, according to Iran’s state news agency. The government urged residents to avoid unnecessary travel on the roads until further notice. Hormozgan Province, which includes Bandar Abbas, lies along the Strait of Hormuz.

Iranian state media reported overnight that at least six areas had been targeted around the country, including Bandar Abbas, but also Ahvaz, the capital of the oil-rich Khuzestan Province about 500 miles northwest of the strait, as well as Lar and Darab, two inland cities in Iran’s southern Fars province. A water desalination plant in the southern province of Jask was also struck, according to Iranian state television. The U.S. military did not immediately respond to a request for comment on those claims.

By Saturday afternoon, some previously damaged traffic routes hit during the last several days of attacks appeared to have been at least partially restored, with Iranian state media reporting that passenger train traffic had resumed from the Bandar Abbas railway station and the opening of an alternative route to the east of the city.

The U.S. military said its overnight strikes had targeted “surveillance sites, military logistics infrastructure, underground weapons storage and maritime capabilities.” It made no mention of civilian infrastructure, though President Trump has frequently threatened to bombard such sites, including power plants and bridges.

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