Iran War Escalation Sets Key Gas Sites And World Energy Prices Ablaze
American ally Qatar is livid with Iran but also the United States and Israel, a senior official close to its leaders told NBC News.
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The molten fireballs and belching smoke over the Middle East early Thursday signaled a dramatic escalation in the Iran war — and its threat to the global economy.
Israel launched a widespread strike on Iran's world-largest gas field, South Pars, triggering retaliation from Tehran against key energy sites across the Gulf Arab states.
Like the blockaded Strait of Hormuz, these facilities dictate global prices for energy and other goods, which soared early Thursday. Economists are alarmed this disruption could cause a global economic shock triggering price rises and shortages for billions of people.
With American allies in the Gulf and Europe expressing fury, President Donald Trump said Israel would launch no more attacks on the gas field unless Iran again bombed U.S. partner Qatar. If Tehran did so, he vowed he would “massively blow up the entirety of the South Pars Gas Field.”
Qatar is livid with Iran but also the United States and Israel, a senior official close to its leaders told NBC News. The Gulf kingdom is angry that a war partly framed as protecting the flows of oil and gas is now setting its vital infrastructure ablaze, the official said.
French President Emmanuel Macron called the escalation "reckless," adding that he hopes "everyone comes to their senses."
In a joint statement, Macron and leaders of the U.K., Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and Japan called for an "immediate comprehensive moratorium on attacks on civilian infrastructure, including oil and gas installations."
The six leaders also expressed their "readiness to contribute to appropriate efforts to ensure safe passage through the Strait," and welcomed the "commitment of nations who are engaging in preparatory planning."
The international benchmark of Brent crude oil spiked as high as $119 a barrel early Thursday, and wholesale natural gas prices across Europe jumped by as much as 25%. Both dipped slightly through the morning, though they remained significantly elevated compared to their prewar levels.