President Donald Trump has threatened to destroy all water desalination plants in Iran, a move that international law experts warn would constitute a violation of humanitarian law by targeting civilian infrastructure upon which millions depend for survival.
In remarks delivered Sunday, Trump stated he would "blow up" Iran's desalination facilities if the country continues its military resistance, according to Al Jazeera. The threat represents a significant escalation in rhetoric, moving from military to civilian infrastructure targets.
Iran operates several major desalination plants along its southern coast, providing fresh water to an estimated 8 million people in coastal cities including Bandar Abbas and Bushehr. The facilities are particularly critical in Iran's arid climate, where access to fresh water is already limited by geography and years of drought.
International humanitarian law, codified in the Geneva Conventions, explicitly prohibits attacks on objects indispensable to the survival of the civilian population. Water supply installations fall squarely within this protected category.
"Targeting desalination plants would be a clear violation of Article 54 of Additional Protocol I to the Geneva Conventions," said Dr. Elena Rodríguez, an international law professor at The Hague who specializes in the laws of armed conflict. "These are civilian objects essential for survival. Their destruction could constitute a war crime."
To understand today's headlines, we must look at yesterday's decisions. The deliberate targeting of civilian infrastructure has historical precedents that drew international condemnation. During the 1991 Gulf War, the destruction of 's water treatment facilities led to a humanitarian catastrophe, with disease outbreaks killing thousands of Iraqi civilians, particularly children. The UN later classified the action as having violated international humanitarian law.
