U.S. military officials are worried Iran could target desalination plants in the Gulf

Kenneth McKenzie.
(Image credit: Alex Wong/Getty Images)

Gen. Kenneth McKenzie, the commander of U.S. Central Command, is wary of another attack from Iran in the Gulf, Foreign Policy reports.

"I think the strike on Saudi Aramco in September is pretty indicative of a nation that is behaving irresponsibly," McKenzie said. "My judgment is that it is very possible they will attack again."

McKenzie did not cite any evidence, so perhaps it's more of a gut feeling, but his concern seems real. "I wouldn't discount anything from Iran," he said.

The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

He pledged Saturday while speaking at a conference in Bahrain that the United States would maintain its security commitment to the Gulf Region.

The general said he fears that Iran could orchestrate a drone- and missile-heavy attack, in the same vein of the Aramco attacks, which the U.S. and its European allies blame Tehran for, despite the latter's denial. And it appears that the U.S. military has a worst-case scenario for where such a strike might take place. One official told Foreign Policy that they're particularly focused on potential threats on desalination plants in the arid Gulf region. An attack on the plants would put the region's primary source of drinking water at risk, which could spur a humanitarian crisis. The official said targeting the plants would be a "gamechanger." Read more at Foreign Policy.

Explore More
Tim O'Donnell

Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.