US targets Iran’s Chabahar Port in fresh strikes, Hegseth shares image of collapsing watchtower
The US military struck infrastructure at Iran's Chabahar port, damaging a watchtower that Iranian officials described as part of the port's civilian monitoring system.
The US Defense Secretary shared imagery of the structure's collapse; the wider campaign in the region reportedly also targeted bridges, an airport, and a railway station in Iran's Hormozgan province, aimed at degrading transport links between Iran's coast and its interior.
India had withdrawn from active involvement in the Chabahar port project earlier in 2026, after having invested in developing the Shahid Beheshti terminal there, ahead of the expiry of a US sanctions waiver that had shielded the project.
The development highlights the vulnerability of India's connectivity investments in Iran to the broader US-Iran conflict and sanctions regime.
Chabahar Port: India's Connectivity Gateway to Afghanistan and Central Asia
Chabahar is Iran's only deep-sea port with direct access to the Indian Ocean, located on the Gulf of Oman, outside the Strait of Hormuz. India, Iran and Afghanistan signed a Trilateral Transit and Transport Corridor Agreement on 23 May 2016 in Tehran, alongside a bilateral India-Iran contract for India to equip and operate the Shahid Beheshti terminal at Chabahar. India Ports Global Limited (IPGL) — a joint venture of Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust and Deendayal (Kandla) Port Trust — was set up to execute the project, with a special-purpose vehicle, India Ports Global Chabahar Free Zone (IPGCFZ), handling on-ground operations.
Key Details
- Chabahar is located roughly 800 km closer to the Afghan border than Pakistan's Karachi port, giving India a route to Afghanistan and Central Asia that bypasses Pakistani territory.
- On 13 May 2024, India and Iran signed a 10-year long-term contract between IPGL and Iran's Ports & Maritime Organisation for continued operation of the Shahid Beheshti terminal.
- Chabahar is envisaged as a key node linking India to the International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC), a multi-modal route connecting India, Iran, Russia, and Central Asian states via the Caspian Sea.
The US strikes on Chabahar's infrastructure came after India had already begun winding down its role in the project — India did not allocate funds for Chabahar in its 2026 budget and explored transferring its stake in the free-zone entity to an Iranian partner, following the expiry of a US sanctions waiver in April 2026.
US Sanctions on Iran and the Chabahar Waiver History
Chabahar had historically enjoyed a specific carve-out from US sanctions on Iran, first granted during the first Trump administration in recognition of the port's role in supplying landlocked Afghanistan without transiting Pakistan. This exemption was maintained through subsequent US administrations even as broader sanctions (reimposed after the US withdrew from the Iran nuclear deal, the JCPOA, in 2018) remained in force on most Iran-related trade.
Key Details
- In September 2025, the US administration announced it would revoke remaining sanctions exemptions related to Iran, including the Chabahar carve-out.
- India secured a temporary extension of the waiver, but it ultimately expired around 26 April 2026, after which India accelerated efforts to disengage from active operations at the port.
- Sanctions of this kind are typically implemented via US Executive Orders and statutes such as the Iran sanctions framework built up since the JCPOA's collapse; Iran itself is also separately designated under other US sanctions regimes tied to its regional conflicts.
The direct US military strikes on Chabahar's infrastructure mark an escalation beyond economic sanctions to kinetic action against port facilities, underscoring why India's diplomatic caution in gradually exiting (rather than abruptly abandoning) the project was driven by both sanctions risk and now physical security risk.
- Chabahar Trilateral Transit Agreement signed: 23 May 2016 (India, Iran, Afghanistan).
- India Ports Global Limited (IPGL): joint venture of Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust and Deendayal (Kandla) Port Trust, operating the Shahid Beheshti terminal.
- 10-year Chabahar operations contract between IPGL and Iran signed: 13 May 2024.
- Chabahar is located on the Gulf of Oman, giving it access to the Indian Ocean without transiting the Strait of Hormuz.
- US sanctions waiver for Chabahar expired around 26 April 2026, after being extended from an earlier September 2025 revocation announcement.