The Daily Populous Sunday March 8th, 2026 evening edition
Authored by independent.co.uk and submitted by Pretend-Prune6285

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An Iranian drone attack caused “material damage” to a desalination plant, Bahrain said Sunday morning.

It was the first time an Arab country has reported Iran targeting a desalination plant during the nine-day war.

Hundreds of desalination plants sit along the Persian Gulf coast, and the Arab countries in the region rely heavily on the facilities for their drinking water.

It comes as Israel on Sunday struck southern Lebanon, Beirut and an oil storage facility in Tehran as the war in the Middle East keeps escalating, and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu promised “many surprises” for the next phase of the conflict.

Earlier Sunday, Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said a U.S. airstrike damaged an Iranian desalination plant on Qeshm Island, warning that in doing so “the U.S. set this precedent, not Iran.”

An explosion erupts following strikes near Azadi Tower close to Mehrabad International Airport in Tehran ( AFP via Getty Images )

Such infrastructure is critical for drinking water supplies in the parched deserts of the Gulf.

An Israeli attack on an oil storage facility in Tehran sent up pillars of fire that could be seen in Associated Press video as a glow against the Saturday night sky.

The sky over Iran’s capital was blanketed with smoke Sunday morning, hours after Israeli strikes hit oil facilities in Tehran, Associated Press footage showed.

Fars news agency reported that Saturday’s strikes hit four oil storage facilities and an oil production transfer center in Tehran and Alborz. Four tanker drivers in the center were killed, it reported.

The strikes sent up pillars of fire that could be seen in AP video as a glow against the Saturday night sky.

It appeared to be the first time a civil industrial facility has been targeted in the war.

The war, which erupted on Feb. 28 after joint U.S.-Israeli strikes hit Iran, has so far killed at least 1,230 people in the Islamic Republic, more than 300 in Lebanon and around a dozen in Israel, according to officials.

Elsewhere, a missile alert sounded Sunday morning in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

JustAhobbyish on March 8th, 2026 at 13:50 UTC »

So Americans and Israel attack Iranian desalination plant. Now Iran attacks a Bahrain one. Most of middle east gets it water this way. Dangerous. War crime. This could trigger a much bigger crisis if it spreads and damage is significant. Reckless and nobody thinking about the consequences. Dear god.

CyroSwitchBlade on March 8th, 2026 at 09:11 UTC »

Trillion dollar cities in the desert with no water : /

Pretend-Prune6285 on March 8th, 2026 at 07:12 UTC »

SS:

Did the US start a race to the bottom by attacking desalination plants in Iranian islands

https://www.iranintl.com/en/202603072697

US hit desalination plant on Qeshm Island, Iran FM says

For gulf nations >80% water comes from desalination. This is a bigger threat than running out of interceptors.