Iran put a clock on Gulf energy strikes Wednesday after Israel bombed the South Pars gasfield in a historic escalation — the first time Iran’s fossil fuel production had been directly targeted in the conflict. The Revolutionary Guards named specific facilities in Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Qatar and ordered immediate evacuations, warning that strikes would come “in the coming hours.” Oil markets surged on the news, with prices approaching $110 a barrel.
South Pars, shared between Iran and Qatar, holds the world’s largest natural gas reserves and is central to Iran’s economic survival. The Israeli strike — reportedly authorized by the US — ended months of careful restraint and opened the door to a wave of retaliatory threats that threatened to engulf Gulf energy infrastructure. The decision marked a turning point in the conflict’s scope and economic consequences.
Specific targets named by Iran’s state media included Saudi Arabia’s Samref refinery and Jubail complex, the UAE’s al-Hosn gasfield, and Qatar’s Mesaieed and Ras Laffan facilities. Workers and residents near these sites were instructed to leave immediately. Asaluyeh governor Eskandar Pasalar said the attack had launched a full-scale economic war and called the US-Israeli decision a grave strategic miscalculation.
Oil prices rose to $108.60 a barrel — a nearly 5% gain — while European gas benchmarks jumped more than 7.5%. Gulf oil exports had already fallen 60% from pre-war levels, a consequence of infrastructure damage and Iran’s Strait of Hormuz blockade. Earlier in the week, the global oil price had briefly exceeded $116 a barrel. The threat of Iranian strikes on Gulf facilities raised fears of further supply disruptions that could push prices even higher.
Qatar’s government spokesperson warned that attacking energy infrastructure endangered global energy security and regional populations. As Iran’s clock ran down and oil markets remained on edge, the world was watching the Gulf’s most consequential and dangerous energy standoff in modern history. The conflict had crossed into territory from which retreat would be difficult — and the consequences for the global economy would be felt far beyond the Middle East.