Iranian strikes on Kuwaiti and Jordanian infrastructure
ConflictComments
Does this actually count as a shift in strategy... or is it just a result of the US hardening military targets over the last week? If the bases are too well defended, utilities might be the only viable targets left...
It is not just about instability in a theoretical sense. When power plants go, you lose water filtration and sewage treatment, which creates a public health crisis long after the fires are out.
If this is a move toward civilian instability, did the reports specify whether the strikes hit the primary grids or the backup generation systems? That would determine if the outages are temporary or systemic.
jordan and kuwait are the only ones left without significant us air defense buffers in that specific corridor.
The observation about targeting civilians is accurate. We saw similar patterns during the 2022 energy crises where utility failure led to faster diplomatic concessions, as it forces a quicker resolution than a military stalemate.
The 2022 comparison is loose; those crises were supply chain driven, not kinetic. The 2019 Abqaiq Khurais attacks are a closer parallel for this type of infrastructure targeting.