Videos and debris raise questions over alleged US strike on Iranian wedding

Amateur videos showing the aftermath of a US attack on September 1 on the building show extensive destruction. The roof of the building, located in Kuhestak, Hormozgan province, along Iran’s southern Persian Gulf coast, appears to have been completely destroyed, with debris scattered for dozens of metres around the impact site. Videos from a hospital in Minab, 45 km to the north, also show people injured in the attack, including children being treated, as well as the body of a boy, covered with a blue sheet.

According to the Iranian Red Crescent, five people were killed and 68 others were injured in the attack.

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"There’s absolutely no military infrastructure near that house"

"Motahereh7", a resident of the town with a large following on Instagram, posted a video shortly after the airstrikes at around 9:30pm local time saying she had been attending a wedding at the site. 

"Lots of you sent me messages asking, 'Have they hit Kuhestak?'. Yes, they hit the house where there was a wedding. It’s my husband’s cousin’s house. I don’t know yet how many people were there, how many people are under [the rubble]… God help us. There’s absolutely no military infrastructure near that house. Nothing…"

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What do we know about the attack?

A CCTV video that captured the impact on the town shows at least six explosions. The apparent primary target was a communications tower on the edge of the town, on the shore of the Persian Gulf. Videos recorded by local residents also documented strikes on the tower.

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FRANCE 24 geolocated the communications tower and found it to be located in an urban area, just 30 metres from the nearest buildings.

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Several videos showing the aftermath indicate that the building where the wedding was said to be taking place was directly hit, rather than damaged by shrapnel. Using several videos recorded by local residents, FRANCE 24 geolocated the building and found that it was more than 135 metres from the communications tower.

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According to several experts, remnants of missile debris recovered from the impact site suggest that a SLAM-ER cruise missile may have been used. Boeing, the missile’s manufacturer, describes the SLAM-ER as the most accurate weapon in the US Navy’s inventory. 

However, FRANCE 24 could not independently confirm whether the debris was recovered from the site of the strike on the wedding, or from the communications tower.

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Several Iranian officials reacted to the incident. Bagher Ghalibaf, Iran’s parliament speaker and a key figure in negotiations with the United States, called the US government "Satan".

Tim Hawkins, a spokesperson for US Central Command, said they were aware of reports of civilian casualties. He added: "The US military never targets civilians, unlike the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC)."

This is the fourth reported incident in which US strikes have hit civilian sites in Iran since the US-Israel war against Iran began in February 2026.

On February 28, the first day of the war, a strike reportedly carried out by the United States killed about 170 people, most of them schoolchildren, as well as teachers, parents and others.