Shoes lay scattered across the ground, children were among the injured and what was supposed to be a wedding celebration had turned into a devastating scene in Kuhestak, a small coastal town in southern Iran.
Days after the US strike, the impact was still visible across the town, with damaged buildings, piles of debris and belongings abandoned as residents escaped the chaos. Iranian media and rights groups reported that at least five people, including a child, were killed, while more than 60 others were injured.
“There was dust and smoke everywhere. Someone was shouting, someone was screaming,” local resident Suleiman Zakiri Fard told Iran’s WANA news agency, according to Reuters. He said people emerged from the wreckage one by one, many covered in blood.
Fard said he saw two drone strikes hit the wedding gathering after a missile struck a nearby telecommunications tower.
The wedding was about to begin when the explosions occurred. According to the Associated Press (AP), women and children had gathered at a family compound for the ceremony, though the bride and groom had not arrived yet.
‘THE SCENES WERE VERY HEARTBREAKING’
For 34-year-old local vendor Sasan Zarei, the aftermath was equally traumatic.
Zarei said he was outside the town when he heard the explosions on Tuesday. After learning that the home of local resident Ali Mallahi had been hit, he rushed to the location and joined others in searching through the rubble.
“We rushed to help, and recovered people and stuff from under the rubble. Most of the injured were kids,” Zarei told AP.
He remembered seeing shoes strewn across the blast site and described the severe injuries suffered by children.
“The scenes were very heartbreaking. The shoes had been scattered everywhere. One of the kids had their lungs torn out. They are now hospitalized,” Zarei said, according to AP.
Zarei also rejected claims that the location was a military site.
He said the US, fearing Iran’s missiles, had struck innocent civilians and insisted that the area was neither a military zone nor anything similar.
The reported attack has since raised questions about whether a US weapon directly struck the wedding gathering.
WEAPONS EXPERTS POINT TO DIRECT US STRIKE
The United States has not acknowledged responsibility for the incident. However, Reuters analysed verified photographs and videos and concluded that the explosion at the wedding was likely caused by a direct strike from a US munition rather than a ricochet from another target.
Reuters provided footage and images from the site to four military weapons experts. Three assessed that the munition was probably American rather than a misfired Iranian air-defence missile, while another said the weapon could have missed its intended target.
The wedding venue was located roughly 135 metres from a telecommunications tower that was reportedly targeted during the US operation, Reuters reported.
Iranian authorities have also cited evidence recovered from the scene. The Chief Justice of Hormozgan province told WANA that fragments discovered at the site were identified as belonging to the US military.
Video recorded in Kuhestak on Friday showed damaged structures and rubble still covering parts of the streets several days after the explosion.
VANCE SAYS US IS INVESTIGATING
US Vice President JD Vance said on Thursday that Washington was examining reports that a US strike had hit a wedding.
Vance said the matter was being investigated thoroughly and maintained that the United States does not deliberately target civilians during combat, while acknowledging that such incidents can occur.
US Central Command spokesman Capt. Tim Hawkins also confirmed that the military was examining reports of the wedding strike, though he did not clarify whether a formal investigation had been opened.
The US military has said its broader operations in southern Iran were aimed at military infrastructure, including air-defence systems, radar facilities, maritime assets and communications sites.
The incident has nevertheless drawn renewed attention to the civilian casualties resulting from the latest escalation between the US and Iran.
A TOWN CAUGHT IN A WIDER WAR
Kuhestak is among several small settlements along Iran’s remote southern coastline, near the strategically significant Strait of Hormuz.
The reported attack occurred as Washington and Tehran resumed exchanging strikes following a month-long pause in hostilities. Iran responded with missile and drone attacks against US forces and American allies in the region after the latest American bombardment.
The Strait of Hormuz has become a key flashpoint, with the US accusing Iran of interfering with shipping along the crucial waterway. The escalation has fuelled concerns about a broader regional conflict and potential disruptions to global energy supplies.
For the people of Kuhestak, however, the consequences have been immediate and deeply personal.
A family gathering meant to celebrate a wedding was transformed into a field of destruction. The ceremony never took place, while residents searched through the ruins for survivors and recovered belongings from shattered homes.
The tragedy has also brought back memories of another deadly attack in the area. In February, Iranian officials said a US missile strike destroyed a primary school in Minab, about 30 kilometres from Kuhestak, killing more than 175 people.
Once again, residents are left clearing debris from a conflict being waged far beyond their small coastal community, while mourning a wedding celebration that instead became another devastating episode in the town’s wartime history.
