Iran’s tallest bridge collapses in seconds in US-Israeli air strikes during peace talks

Eight people have been killed after the US-Israeli strikes destroyed Iran’s tallest bridge, Iran’s state media has said.

The B1 bridge, which links Iran’s capital with the western city of Karaj, was hit with a wave of strikes last night after Donald Trump said he wanted to take the nation ‘back to the Stone Age’.

One strike severely damaged the bridge, while a second took place while rescue forces were at the scene helping injured at least 95 people, Iranian state media claimed.

The strikes also wounded 95 people who had gathering under the bridge and along the riverbank to celebrate ‘Nature Day,’ Iran’s state media said, citing authorities in Alborz province.

The B1 Bridge was hit by Israeli-US strikes last night. The bridge was due to open to traffic in the next few months

Hours before the attack, Trump warned late on Thursday about striking and ⁠destroying bridges and electric power plants in Iran in his latest threat to hit the country’s infrastructure.

He said the US military ‘hasn’t even started destroying what’s left in Iran. Bridges next, then Electric Power Plants.’

In his message, which he posted on Truth Social, he said that Iran’s leadership ‘knows what ⁠has to be done, and has to ​be ⁠done, FAST!’

Hours later, the B1 bridge was destroyed.

One strike severely damaged the bridge, while a second took place while rescue forces were at the scene helping injured at least 95 people, Iranian state media claimed (Photo by Fatemeh Bahrami/Anadolu via Getty Images)

Trump posted again, alongside footage of the building collapsing, writing: ‘The biggest bridge in Iran comes tumbling down, never to be used again — Much more to follow! IT IS TIME FOR IRAN TO MAKE A DEAL BEFORE IT IS TOO LATE, AND THERE IS NOTHING LEFT OF WHAT STILL COULD BECOME A GREAT COUNTRY! President DONALD J. TRUMP.’

The B1 bridge was scheduled to open to traffic this year. ‘Striking civilian structures, including unfinished bridges, will not compel Iranians to surrender,’ Iran Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said in a statement.

Iranian ⁠media reported a drone attack on Friday morning on a Red Crescent relief warehouse in the Choghadak area of southern Bushehr ​province, saying ⁠two containers were destroyed. Bushehr, a major port city and key maritime hub, also hosts Iran’s first nuclear power facility.

Satellite images also showed smoke rising from the port in Qeshm, an Iranian island strategically located in the Strait of Hormuz, earlier this week.

Hours before the attack, Trump warned late on Thursday about striking and ⁠destroying bridges and electric power plants in Iran in his latest threat to hit the country’s infrastructure (Photo by Fatemeh Bahrami/Anadolu via Getty Images)

Iran and its allies have continued to strike targets around the Gulf. Kuwait Petroleum Corporation said its Mina al-Ahmadi refinery was hit by drones, setting ⁠off fires at operating units, but no injuries were reported, according to the state news agency.

Saudi Arabia’s defence ministry said on Friday its air defences intercepted seven drones in recent hours, according to its state ​news agency.

And a spokesperson ⁠for Iran’s Khatam al-Anbiya central HQ said on Friday a second U.S. F-35 fighter ‌jet was shot down over central Iran by Revolutionary Guard air defences, with low chances of pilot survival.

There was no immediate comment from the US.

Last month, the US military said in a statement that a U.S. F-35 aircraft conducted an emergency landing after flying a combat mission over Iran. The military said the pilot was in stable condition.

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