New attack that threatens to further escalate tension in the Middle East and the Near East. Israel has once again bombed the largest natural gas extraction plant in Iran and the world, which Tehran exploits and manages jointly with Qatar, one of the US’s greatest allies in the region.
As reported this Monday by the Israeli Minister of Defense, Israel Katz, IDF aviation has attacked the petrochemical plant located in the city of Asaluyeh, which can be considered at the end of February. Specifically, Katz has indicated that the facilities have been “disabled.”
“This represents a hard economic blow for the Iranian regime, with losses of tens of billions of dollars,” assessed the Israeli Defense Minister, but underlining that these facilities represent “approximately 50% of Iranian petrochemical production”, but that together with the other facilities attacked previously, 85% of Iranian gas exports have been compromised.
Iran confirms bombing
Confirmation by the Iranian authorities did not take long to arrive, from the hand of one of the media outlets that the Iranian Revolutionary Guard usually uses, in this case the agency Fars. According to his chronicle, “a few minutes ago several explosions were heard coming from the South Pars petrochemical complex, in the city of Asaluyeh.” However, in that information they refer to the attack as a joint attack between Israel and the United States.
According to the information of Tanismanother Iranian agency, the attacks have targeted facilities of the Mobin and Damavand companies, which are responsible for the supply of electricity, but also water or oxygen for the productive fabric of the petrochemical sector. This means there will be no power supplying South Pars until the bombed facilities are repaired. In those same reports, it is also indicated that the South Pars facility remains operational and has not suffered damage.
What the Iranian authorities did assure when the first attack occurred is that it would not go unanswered and that it would unleash a “total economic war”, warning that “we consider it legitimate to attack the fuel, energy and gas infrastructure of the country of origin and we will take forceful retaliation at the first opportunity.” A few days ago, that initial action skyrocketed the price of natural gas and oil until Trump again left a post on social media talking about not allowing attacks on energy infrastructure.
At that time, the Qatari authorities, which own half of the largest natural gas field on the planet, rejected the attacks, stating that “attacking energy infrastructure constitutes a threat to global energy security, as well as to the people of the region and their environment.” Qatar also represents one of the American partners in the Persian Gulf that is most pressing for an end to the attacks and a commitment to dialogue and diplomacy, compared to Saudi Arabia or the United Arab Emirates.
