Key facts
- Iran has developed a plan to strike Israeli and US energy infrastructure in response to potential "American recklessness."
Iran has prepared a plan to target critical infrastructure in Israel and US energy facilities in the region in response to potential "American recklessness," according to a senior security official. This threat comes amid a significant escalation of fighting between the US and Iran this week.
Iran's threats to target Israeli and US infrastructure, coupled with renewed fighting, escalate regional tensions and pose significant risks to global energy supplies and critical technology infrastructure, potentially impacting international markets and security.
Iran has prepared a comprehensive plan to respond to any "potential American recklessness" by targeting critical infrastructure in Israel and US energy infrastructure in the region, according to a senior security official cited by Tasnim news agency. Iran views reports of potential US and Israeli attacks on its infrastructure as a form of recklessness.
Mohammad Bagher Zolghadr, head of the country's top security body, stated that any attack on infrastructure would be retaliated against, and the "criminal Zionist regime" would not be safe from the response of Iranian fighters. This threat comes as fighting between the US and Iran has intensified this week, marking the most significant exchange of fire since the two sides signed a memorandum of understanding on June 17 to formalize an April ceasefire and guide talks to end the war.
The US military carried out heavy strikes overnight between Wednesday and Thursday, targeting 90 military sites. However, Iran accused Washington of also targeting civilian infrastructure to detract from the funeral of late supreme leader Ali Khamenei. Earlier this month, the IRGC had threatened companies with infrastructure in Israel and the Gulf, including Google, Microsoft, Palantir, IBM, Nvidia, and Oracle, citing their technology's use for military applications.
Previous Iranian drone strikes had already impacted US tech infrastructure, knocking out power to Amazon Web Services cloud computing facilities in the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain on March 3. Experts have warned that data centers are becoming increasingly critical for a broad range of infrastructure, suggesting such attacks could become more frequent. The continued warnings from Iran pose a significant threat to US tech companies and raise questions about the protection of these facilities.