Coalition airstrikes hit the industrial city of Isfahan in central Iran early on March 15, killing at least 15 people and wounding several others. Residential areas in Shiraz, the capital of Fars province, were also attacked. Iran’s Tasnim news agency described the Shiraz strikes as targeting “a residential and deprived area.”
The attacks came as the war entered its 16th day with no signs of de-escalation on either side.
Iran Strikes Back Across Three Countries
The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps announced it had launched its “50th wave” of operations against U.S. bases in the region. The IRGC said the attacks targeted “bases of the US terrorist army” in the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and Kuwait.
The IRGC also issued a warning to the United States to relocate its industries from the Middle East and urged civilians to stay away from factories in which American companies hold shares. The warning followed strikes that killed civilian workers at nonmilitary factories inside Iran.
Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said the U.S. had used cruise missiles launched from the UAE, near Dubai, to carry out the Kharg Island strikes a day earlier. He said Tehran could retaliate and that doing so “would be dangerous for the region.”
Senior Iranian Military Figures Killed
Iran confirmed the death of Brigadier-General Abdullah Jalali Nasab in an Israeli airstrike. His death added to a growing list of senior military officials killed since the war began, including Abdolrahim Mousavi, chief of staff of Iran’s armed forces; Aziz Nasirzadeh, defense minister and deputy chief of staff; and Mohammad Pakpour, IRGC commander-in-chief.
10,000 Homes Destroyed in Tehran Alone
Tehran’s governor reported that at least 10,000 residential homes had been “damaged or completely destroyed” by coalition airstrikes. The total civilian death toll across Iran had passed 1,400 by the end of the day.
Araghchi pushed back against U.S. Defense Secretary Hegseth’s claim that Iran’s new Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei was wounded and “likely disfigured,” saying there is “no problem” with the leader.
Hormuz Standoff Continues
IRGC Navy Commander Alireza Tangsiri said Iran had not fully closed the Strait of Hormuz but was “controlling” passage through it. Shipping traffic through the strait remained down by approximately 90 percent, with only about five vessels per day passing with Iranian permission.
Trump claimed Tehran “wants to make a deal” and called for an international naval coalition to help keep the strait open.
Meanwhile, Iranian authorities arrested 20 people in northwestern Iran’s West Azerbaijan province for allegedly attempting to share military location data with Israel.
In Saudi Arabia, the Defense Ministry reported intercepting four drones in the Eastern Province. Smoke was visible rising from near a major UAE energy installation following earlier Iranian strikes.