War in Iran Threatens Drinking Water for Millions in Persian Gulf

The U.S.-Iran war isn’t just about missiles and diplomacy—it’s a looming crisis for drinking water across the Persian Gulf. Millions depend on desalination plants to turn seawater into safe drinking water, and these facilities have become targets or collateral damage in the conflict. Experts warn that attacks on this civilian infrastructure could constitute war crimes under international law.

Iran itself relies minimally on desalination—only about 3 percent of its water comes from these plants—because it has access to snowmelt and rivers. But neighboring Gulf countries are far more vulnerable. Qatar’s population is nearly 100 percent dependent on desalination, while Kuwait and Bahrain exceed 90 percent. Saudi Arabia and the UAE also rely heavily on these plants to supply their booming urban centers.

The war has already seen accusations fly over attacks on desalination plants: Iran blamed the U.S. for strikes on Qeshm Island, while Bahrain and Kuwait have accused Iran of targeting their water infrastructure. Beyond direct attacks, oil spills from damaged energy installations are fouling the waters, threatening to clog desalination pipes and filters. Radioactive contamination from damaged nuclear sites adds another layer of risk.

Chris Low, director of the Middle East Center at the University of Utah, calls smaller Gulf states “exquisitely vulnerable,” with only days to a week of reserve water capacity. The sabotage recalls Saddam Hussein’s 1990 invasion of Kuwait, when power plants and desalination facilities were deliberately destroyed, causing a water crisis that took months to resolve.

The stakes are high: the conflict threatens a long-term ecological disaster that could destabilize the region far beyond the battlefield. As the war drags on, the civilian populations of the Gulf face a growing threat to their most basic necessity—clean, safe drinking water. This is yet another brutal consequence of a conflict fueled by authoritarian brinkmanship and disregard for human life.