Donald Trump has claimed responsibility for the destruction of Iran's largest bridge, a day after threatening to bomb the country “back to the stone ages” if a deal to end the five-week-long war was not reached. The US president shared footage of the newly built 136-metre-high, $400m B1 suspension bridge between Tehran and Karaj collapsing after being struck twice, leaving a clear gap in the structure.
Eight people were killed and 95 wounded in the attack, according to Iranian state media. The bridge, one of Iran's premier infrastructure projects, was split in half. Trump posted on Truth Social: “The biggest bridge in Iran comes tumbling down, never to be used again,” and warned there would be “much more to follow” if a settlement was not reached.
The strike on the bridge is one of several confirmed attacks in Iran this week, despite internet shutdowns. Footage of a major strike on a missile base in Isfahan was confirmed as genuine, showing fiery plumes and secondary explosions. Iran also reported that the Pasteur medical institute in Tehran was hit, while Israel said it struck a Revolutionary Guard headquarters used to finance armed proxies.
Iran has suffered more than 15,000 bombing raids since the war began on 28 February, with at least 1,900 people killed and 20,000 injured, according to the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies. Oil prices jumped 7% to $108 a barrel amid no sign of the conflict ending. UN Secretary General António Guterres warned the world is “on the edge of a wider war”.
