At least four people were killed and 68 injured when a missile blast struck or hit near a wedding at a private home in Kuhestak, in Iran’s southern Hormozgan province, late on Tuesday, according to Iranian media. The dead included a four-year-old child and a 16-year-old teenager.
Iran’s foreign ministry called the incident a “war crime” and said Iran would respond, while US Central Command said it was aware of reports of civilian casualties and that US forces do not target civilians. It was not immediately clear whether the home was hit directly or whether debris from a nearby strike caused the casualties.
What happened at the wedding
Footage from the scene showed a collapsed roof, broken windows, debris and walls marked by what appeared to be shrapnel damage. Images from a nearby hospital showed injured children being treated while women in wedding attire watched. For additional context, see “Why the Strait of Hormuz crisis is reshaping global shipping”.
Ahmad Nafisi, a deputy in the provincial government, said first responders went to the scene immediately and transported wounded people to hospitals. A child who was injured said bricks, stones and cement struck him during the explosion.
What we know now
- CCTV footage showed at least six strikes in the area within one minute.
- A separate strike appeared to hit a communications tower about 150 metres from the home.
- Iranian authorities said several telecommunications and internet towers and sites were seriously damaged.
Why the cause remains disputed
Iranian state media published images of shrapnel collected at the site. Independent weapons analyst Trevor Ball said some remnants appeared to be components of a US-made Standoff Land Attack Missile-Expanded Response, or SLAM-ER, a GPS-guided weapon made by Boeing. The material does not establish whether the missile directly hit the house. A related part of this story is covered in “Temporary Hormuz shipping corridor agreed, Iran says”.
US Central Command said its overnight strikes targeted Iranian military sites, including air-defence positions, radar and maritime assets. The strikes came after attacks on Sunday ended a month-long uneasy truce, while Iran responded with drones and missiles aimed at US bases in Bahrain, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates.
Iran’s foreign ministry spokesperson condemned the attack, and chief negotiator Mohammad Baqer Ghalibaf said families with children had been killed. Iran’s military spokesperson, Lt Col Ebrahim Zolfaghari, threatened retaliation that would be “heavier, broader, and more crushing and devastating.” The development of this issue can be followed in “Iran and Oman weigh a temporary shipping route through Hormuz”.
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