An Israeli-led airstrike on Iran’s South Pars gas field triggered a massive Iranian counterattack on Thursday, with Tehran targeting energy infrastructure across the Gulf with scores of ballistic missiles and drones.
Officials in Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Kuwait all reported downing Iranian drones or missiles early Thursday.
Qatar’s Ras Laffan Industrial City, which produces at least 20% of the world’s liquid natural gas supply, sustained “extensive damage” from an Iranian attack, according to authorities. No casualties were reported, but first responders were still in the process of putting out massive fires at LNG facilities caused by the strikes on Thursday morning.
Iran also targeted the Ras Laffan site on Wednesday.
The Qatari Foreign Ministry called the attacks a “flagrant violation of its sovereignty,” and French President Emmanuel Macron called for a moratorium on strikes targeting civilian infrastructure.
Iranian attacks also struck Saudi Arabia’s Aramco-Exxon SAMREF refinery, located near the western city of Yanbu. While authorities are still investigating the extent of the damage, Iran’s ability to hit the Yanbu site caused alarm among Saudi officials since it remains the country’s primary export location, after Iran announced the closure of the Strait of Hormuz earlier this month.
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Emirati defense officials said they intercepted 13 ballistic missiles and 27 drones in overnight attacks on UAE energy sites. Authorities said Thursday that the Habshan gas facilities and the Bab oilfield had been damaged by falling debris from an intercepted missile, but did not elaborate on the extent of the damage.
The UAE’s Foreign Ministry classified the strikes as “terrorist attacks” and a dangerous escalation in an already deadly war.
Iranian officials vowed to ramp up their attacks on energy infrastructure in the Gulf on Wednesday after Israeli airstrikes damaged Iran’s South Pars gas field, the largest facility of its kind in the world.
The speaker of Iran’s parliament, Mohammad-Bagher Ghalibaf, wrote Wednesday that U.S. and Israeli forces are attacking Iran’s energy infrastructure out of desperation.
“They are angry and frustrated … and by attacking infrastructure, seek to conceal their battlefield defeats. Of course, this amounts to suicide for them,” Mr. Ghalibaf wrote. “An eye for an eye equation is in effect, and a new level of confrontation has begun.”
Both the Israeli and Iranian strikes sent shockwaves through global energy markets, already tumultuous following Iran’s attacks on commercial vessels traveling in the Persian Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz.
Brent crude prices climbed above $115 a barrel on Wednesday before dropping back down to just over $110, the highest price since the 2022 crisis. Europe’s gas benchmark also surged by nearly 6% on Wednesday and American unleaded gas prices continued to inch closer to $4 a gallon.
• Vaughn Cockayne can be reached at vcockayne@washingtontimes.com.
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