Iran vowed to bring the war to the Gulf’s energy heartland on Wednesday after Israeli forces struck the South Pars gasfield in the first direct attack on Iranian fossil fuel production. The Revolutionary Guards announced imminent strikes against facilities in Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Qatar and ordered immediate evacuation. Oil prices surged toward $110 a barrel as the threat became the most credible and specific of the entire conflict.
South Pars, the world’s largest natural gas reserve, is shared between Iran and Qatar and fundamental to Iran’s energy revenues. The Israeli strike — reportedly authorized by the US — ended months of deliberate restraint around Iranian energy infrastructure. Washington and Tel Aviv had previously avoided this step, understanding that crossing it would provoke precisely the kind of sweeping retaliation now unfolding.
Iran’s state media named Saudi Arabia’s Samref refinery and Jubail complex, the UAE’s al-Hosn gasfield, and Qatar’s Mesaieed and Ras Laffan installations as targets for strikes within hours. All workers and residents were ordered to leave immediately. The governor of Asaluyeh province called the US-Israeli action “political suicide” and said Iran was now engaged in a total economic war.
Brent crude climbed to $108.60 per barrel, while European gas benchmarks surged more than 7.5%. Gulf oil exports had already fallen 60% from pre-war volumes due to sustained infrastructure damage and Iran’s Strait of Hormuz blockade. Iran had continued exporting its own crude unimpeded through the strait while blocking its neighbors’ shipments — a strategic weapon that had given it a significant economic advantage throughout the conflict.
Qatar’s government spokesperson warned that targeting energy infrastructure posed a grave threat to global energy security and the welfare of millions. Iran’s vow to bring the war to the Gulf’s energy heartland marked a historic escalation — one that placed the world’s most critical energy supply chains in direct jeopardy. The coming hours would determine how severely that jeopardy would be realized, and what the lasting consequences would be for global energy markets.