Trump Praises Hegseth Amid Civilian Casualties in US Strikes on Iran
Quick Look
- US President Donald Trump praised Secretary of War Pete Hegseth for recent strikes on Iran, despite a US-guided munition hitting a wedding in Kuhestak, Hormozgan Province, killing two women and two children aged four and 16 and wounding at least 67 others.
- Iran has called for an ICC investigation and UN Security Council condemnation, while retaliating with missile and drone attacks on US facilities in Jordan, Bahrain, Kuwait, UAE, and Erbil.
- Trump claimed US forces destroyed much of Iran's naval and air capability, citing prior strikes on an elementary school in Minab and Lamerd that killed hundreds of civilians since February.
AI-generated summary
Why It Matters
The conflict between the US and Iran began in February with US and Israeli strikes against Iran. Since then, multiple incidents have resulted in heavy civilian casualties, including an elementary school strike in Minab killing 175 people and a strike in Lamerd killing 21 civilians. Tehran has accused Washington of war crimes, reporting up to 3,000 civilian casualties since the campaign started.
US President Donald Trump has congratulated Secretary of War Pete Hegseth over the latest American strikes on Iran, despite one of the attacks hitting a wedding and killing several civilians.
Iranian authorities said two women and two children aged four and 16 were killed when a US munition hit a home hosting a wedding in Kuhestak, Hormozgan Province, on Tuesday. At least 67 others were wounded, many of them women and children.
According to weapons experts cited by AP and the New York Times, the fragments recovered at the site belonged to an American air-delivered guided munition, most likely a JSOW.
The Iranian Red Crescent has since asked the International Criminal Court to investigate the Kuhestak strike, while Iran’s UN envoy has urged the Security Council to condemn it.
US Central Command has said it is looking into the reports while insisting that American forces do not target civilians.
“You did a good job last night in Iran, by the way. You knocked the hell out of them,” Trump told Hegseth during an event at the White House on Wednesday. “We’re winning that one very big, by the way, in case you haven’t noticed,” he added, claiming that much of Iran’s naval and air capability has been destroyed.
Tehran responded to the latest wave of attacks by launching its own ballistic missiles and drones at US military facilities in Jordan, Bahrain, Kuwait, and the UAE, as well as Erbil in Kurdistan Region, Iraq.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) later claimed to have killed “a number of enemy elements” and destroyed several drones in a missile and UAV attack on Kuwait’s Ali Al Salem Air Base.
Kuwait acknowledged that its air defenses had intercepted incoming missiles and drones but reported no casualties. Jordan said ten of 13 ballistic missiles that entered its airspace were intercepted.
Tuesday’s wedding strike follows several other incidents in which US attacks have caused heavy civilian casualties in Iran. On the opening day of the war in February, a US strike hit an elementary school in Minab, killing 175 people, most of them children. On the same day, a US strike also killed at least 21 civilians, including seven children, in the southern Iranian city of Lamerd.
Tehran has accused Washington of war crimes throughout the conflict, reporting up to 3,000 civilian casualties since the US and Israel launched their campaign against the Islamic Republic in February.
What to Watch
AI outlook — possibilities, not facts
The International Criminal Court will open a preliminary investigation into the Kuhestak strike.
Likely · Within weeks
Iran will continue to launch missile and drone attacks on US facilities in the region in response to further strikes.
Very likely · Within days
US Central Command will conclude its investigation into the Kuhestak strike without acknowledging responsibility for civilian casualties.
Likely · Within weeks
Open Questions
- What specific type of munition was used in the Kuhestak strike beyond the likelihood of a JSOW?
- Will the International Criminal Court open an investigation into the Kuhestak strike?
- What is the full extent of damage to US military facilities in Jordan, Bahrain, Kuwait, UAE, and Erbil from Iran's retaliation?
- Are there ongoing diplomatic efforts to de-escalate the conflict between the US and Iran?
