The Latest: Trump threatens to strike world's largest gas field if Iran attacks Qatar again
U.S. President Donald Trump pledged the U.S. would “massively blow up the entirety” of the world’s largest gas field if Iran attacks Qatar again.Trump made his threat on social media Wednesday night against Iran’s South Pars natural gas field after Iranian missiles hit Qatar. The Iranian attack was in retaliation for an Israeli attack on the South Pars field earlier Wednesday.The U.S.-Israeli war with Iran has roiled energy markets as the conflict escalates pressure on the region’s energy sector. The price of oil has surged on international markets, increasing the cost of gasoline and other goods while squeezing the global economy.Global oil prices rose on news of the South Pars attack due to fears of Iranian retaliation on Gulf energy infrastructure.Trump said in his post that the U.S. “knew nothing” about the attack, but a person familiar with the matter said earlier Wednesday that the U.S. was informed about Israel’s plans to strike the gas field but did not take part.Hours after the attack on the field, authorities in Qatar said a ballistic missile hit the country’s key natural gas site, sparking a fire that caused “extensive” damage, and Qatar ordered some Iranian Embassy officials out of the country.Iran has been striking its Persian Gulf neighbors’ energy facilities since the war started Feb. 28 and has made the Strait of Hormuz shipping channel, through which one-fifth of the world’s oil travels, nearly impassable. Iran and Hezbollah also have been firing drones and missiles at Israel.Here is the latest:Satellite images show damage to UAE air baseSatellite images show damage at Al Dhafra Air Base in the United Arab Emirates after repeated Iranian attacks targeting the facility hosting American troops.The images, taken Sunday by an Airbus Defence and Space’s Pléiades Neo satellite and analyzed by The Associated Press, show damage at one set of hangars to the northwest of the facility in Abu Dhabi.Another hangar to the southeast of the facility appears shredded by fire, with an adjacent hangar sustaining roof damage.It’s unclear what had been in the hangars.Al Dhafra had hosted some 2,000 U.S. troops and has served as a major base of operations for everything from armed drones to F-35 stealth fighters in recent years.The U.S. military for years only vaguely referred to Al Dhafra as a base in “southwest Asia” before the UAE became more willing to acknowledge the U.S. presence there.Ship hit by a projectile off coast of QatarA projectile hit a ship off the coast of Qatar on Thursday morning, authorities said.The British military’s United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center reported the incident off Ras Laffan, an important natural gas supply point which had been repeatedly hit by Iranian fire overnight.The UKMTO said the ship’s crew was safe.It wasn’t immediately clear if the vessel had been deliberately targeted or potentially struck by falling debris as Qatar fired off missile interceptors at incoming Iranian barrages.South Pars gas crucial for IranAttacking Iran’s South Pars natural gas field, which it shares with Qatar in the Persian Gulf, threatens electricity supplies in the Islamic Republic.Some 80% of all power generated in Iran comes from natural gas, according to the Paris-based International Energy Agency.It also is used to supply household heating and cooking across the Islamic Republic.That is why Iran responded with an aggressive series of attacks targeting gas fields and infrastructure in Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.Latest reports of live fireMobile phone alerts sounded Thursday morning in Dubai in the United Arab Emirates, warning of incoming Iranian missile fire.Kuwait said it shot down Iranian drones incoming to the oil-rich Mideast nation early Thursday morning.Latest reports of live fireIsrael warned the public of another Iranian missile salvo early Thursday morning.Bahrain sounded its missile sirens early Thursday over an incoming Iranian attack.Trump threatens to blow up South Pars gas field if Iran attacks Qatar againU.S. President Donald Trump pledged Israel would make no more attacks on Iran’s major South Pars gas field, but if Iran attacked Qatar again, the U.S. would retaliate and “massively blow up the entirety” of the field.Trump made his threat on social media Wednesday night as the war roiled global energy markets and Iranian missiles hit Qatar.Trump said in his post that the U.S. “knew nothing” about the attack, but a person familiar with the matter said earlier Wednesday that the U.S. was informed about Israel’s plans to strike the gas field but did not take part.Trump said Qatar “was in no way, shape, or form, involved” in Israel’s attacks on Iran’s gas field, but, “Unfortunately, Iran did not know this” and “unjustifiably and unfairly” attacked Qatar.“I do not want to authorize this level of violence and destruction because of the long term implications that it will have on the future of Iran,” Trump said in his threat.He added that he would “
US President Donald Trump pledged the U.S. would “massively blow up the entirety” of the world’s largest gas field if Iran attacks Qatar again.
Trump made his threat on social media Wednesday night against Iran’s South Pars natural gas field after Iranian missiles hit Qatar. The Iranian attack was in retaliation for an Israeli attack on the South Pars field earlier Wednesday.
The U.S.-Israeli war with Iran has roiled energy markets as the conflict escalates pressure on the region’s energy sector. The price of oil has surged on international markets, increasing the cost of gasoline and other goods while squeezing the global economy.
Global oil prices rose on news of the South Pars attack due to fears of Iranian retaliation on Gulf energy infrastructure.
Trump said in his post that the U.S. “knew nothing” about the attack, but a person familiar with the matter said earlier Wednesday that the U.S. was informed about Israel’s plans to strike the gas field but did not take part.
Hours after the attack on the field, authorities in Qatar said a ballistic missile hit the country’s key natural gas site, sparking a fire that caused “extensive” damage, and Qatar ordered some Iranian Embassy officials out of the country.
Iran has been striking its Persian Gulf neighbours’ energy facilities since the war started Feb. 28 and has made the Strait of Hormuz shipping channel, through which one-fifth of the world’s oil travels, nearly impassable. Iran and Hezbollah have also been firing drones and missiles at Israel.
Here is the latest:
Satellite images show damage to UAE air base
Satellite images show damage at Al Dhafra Air Base in the United Arab Emirates after repeated Iranian attacks targeting the facility hosting American troops.
The images, taken Sunday by an Airbus Defence and Space’s Pléiades Neo satellite and analyzed by The Associated Press, show damage at one set of hangars to the northwest of the facility in Abu Dhabi.
Another hangar to the southeast of the facility appears shredded by fire, with an adjacent hangar sustaining roof damage.
It’s unclear what had been in the hangars.
Al Dhafra had hosted some 2,000 U.S. troops and has served as a major base of operations for everything from armed drones to F-35 stealth fighters in recent years.
The U.S. military for years only vaguely referred to Al Dhafra as a base in “southwest Asia” before the UAE became more willing to acknowledge the U.S. presence there.
Ship hit by a projectile off coast of Qatar
A projectile hit a ship off the coast of Qatar on Thursday morning, authorities said.
The British military’s United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations centre reported the incident off Ras Laffan, an important natural gas supply point that had been repeatedly hit by Iranian fire overnight.
The UKMTO said the ship’s crew was safe.
It wasn’t immediately clear if the vessel had been deliberately targeted or potentially struck by falling debris as Qatar fired off missile interceptors at incoming Iranian barrages.
South Pars gas crucial for Iran
Attacking Iran’s South Pars natural gas field, which it shares with Qatar in the Persian Gulf, threatens electricity supplies in the Islamic Republic.
Some 80% of all power generated in Iran comes from natural gas, according to the Paris-based International Energy Agency.
It is also used to supply household heating and cooking across the Islamic Republic.
That is why Iran responded with an aggressive series of attacks targeting gas fields and infrastructure in Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
