Israel’s strike on Iran’s South Pars gasfield unleashed a cascade of threats and market turmoil Wednesday, as Tehran’s Revolutionary Guards warned of imminent attacks on petrochemical and energy hubs across Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Qatar. Named targets were broadcast on state media alongside urgent evacuation orders. The escalation marked the most direct threat to Gulf energy infrastructure since the war began.
South Pars, the world’s single largest natural gas reserve, had been kept off the conflict’s front lines until now. Israel’s decision to strike it — with reported US approval — shattered that arrangement and opened a dangerous new chapter in the regional conflict. For months, both sides had exercised a measure of restraint around energy infrastructure, mindful of the global consequences of disrupting Gulf supplies.
The Revolutionary Guards listed specific targets: the Samref refinery and Jubail petrochemical complex in Saudi Arabia, al-Hosn gasfield in the UAE, and Mesaieed and Ras Laffan in Qatar. Each of these sites plays a critical role in the Gulf’s energy export capacity. Iranian officials framed the threatened strikes as a proportionate and justified response to what they described as an act of economic aggression.
Oil markets responded dramatically. The global benchmark rose toward $110 a barrel, and European gas prices surged past 7.5%. Daily oil exports from the region had already been cut by 60% from pre-war levels, a result of ongoing drone and missile strikes and Iran’s blockade of the Strait of Hormuz. Any successful Iranian strikes on Gulf facilities would further constrict an already dangerously tight global energy supply.
Qatar’s government called on all parties to step back from the brink, warning through its spokesperson that energy infrastructure attacks threatened the world’s energy security and the environment. The Asaluyeh provincial governor said the war had become a full-scale economic conflict — and the markets appeared to agree. The coming hours would test whether diplomacy or military action would define the next chapter of this rapidly escalating crisis.