Iran’s strike threat brought the Gulf energy war to the doorstep of Saudi Arabia and Qatar on Wednesday after Israeli forces attacked the South Pars gasfield — the world’s largest natural gas reserve. The Revolutionary Guards named specific facilities in both countries, as well as in the UAE, as targets for imminent strikes and ordered evacuation. Oil prices surged toward $110 a barrel as the energy war arrived at the doorsteps of the Gulf’s most powerful energy producers.
South Pars is shared between Iran and Qatar and has been the foundation of Iran’s gas exports throughout the conflict. The Israeli attack — reportedly with US backing — was unprecedented in its direct targeting of Iranian fossil fuel production. Both countries had previously avoided this step, but crossing it triggered the most specific and credible retaliatory threat of the war — one that now placed Saudi Arabia and Qatar in direct military jeopardy.
Iran’s state media identified Saudi Arabia’s Samref refinery and Jubail complex, the UAE’s al-Hosn gasfield, and Qatar’s Mesaieed and Ras Laffan facilities as imminent targets. Workers and residents were told to evacuate immediately. Governor Pasalar of Asaluyeh called the US-Israeli escalation “political suicide” and declared the conflict had entered a total economic warfare phase.
Oil climbed to $108.60 per barrel — a nearly 5% gain — while European gas prices jumped more than 7.5%. Gulf oil exports had already fallen 60% from pre-war volumes due to infrastructure attacks and Iran’s Strait of Hormuz blockade. Iran had continued to ship its own crude through the strait unimpeded while blocking Gulf neighbors’ exports — a strategic asymmetry that had given Tehran significant economic leverage throughout the conflict.
Qatar’s government spokesperson warned that attacking energy infrastructure was a direct threat to global energy security and regional populations. The energy war had arrived at the doorstep of the Gulf’s most powerful producers — and the world was watching with a mixture of alarm and disbelief. The conflict had evolved into something that transcended its regional origins, threatening to reshape the global energy landscape for years to come.
