Bahrain accuses Iran of damaging its desalination plant: What is its significance in Gulf amid Middle East conflict?

The island nation, home to the US Navy’s Fifth Fleet, Bahrain, on Sunday became the first Arab country to accuse Iran of a drone attack that resulted in “material damage” to a desalination plant during the nine-day conflict in the Middle East.

“Iranian aggression indiscriminately attacked civilian targets and caused material damage to a water desalination plant following a drone attack,” the Ministry of Interior said following Tehran's earlier allegation of the US targeting one of its own desalination plants from a base in Bahrain.

At least 3 people were injured, it said.

What is the significance of desalination plants in Gulf?

Hundreds of desalination plants line the coast of the Persian Gulf, with Arab countries in the region relying heavily on them for their drinking water supply, according to AP.

According to a research paper published by the Arab Center Washington DC, member states of the Gulf Cooperation Council constitute around 60% of the world’s desalination capacity and produce nearly 40% of the global desalinated water through more than 400 plants across the region.

Most GCC countries depend significantly on desalination to meet their water requirements. In the UAE, about 42% of drinking water is sourced from desalination plants, while the share rises to 90% in Kuwait, 86% in Oman, and 70 percent in Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabia is the world’s largest producer of desalinated water, with its capacity projected to reach 8.5 million cubic metres (300 million cubic feet) per day by 2025 following an investment of about $80 billion in new projects.

Meanwhile, late on Saturday, as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu outlined the next phase of the conflict, stating that Israel intends to destabilise Iran’s regime and enable a change in government, Israeli forces carried out another wave of strikes. Among the targets was an oil storage facility in Tehran, the first apparent attack on a civilian industrial site, sending massive flames into the night sky.

US-Israeli, Iran conflict

Israel and the United States launched the conflict on February 28, saying their attacks were aimed at Iran’s nuclear and missile programmes while also signalling an intention to bring down the Iranian government. The conflict has since expanded across the region, unsettling global markets, disrupting air travel, and leaving Iran’s leadership under pressure following hundreds of Israeli and American airstrikes.

Iran has responded by launching missiles and drones at neighbouring Gulf countries, while Israel has stepped up its attacks in Lebanon. Strikes have also been reported from Cyprus to waters near Sri Lanka.