Washington, United States. The United States and Israel exchanged air strikes with Iran’s military across the Middle East as Iran’s government warned its state security forces were ready to confront any renewed anti-government protests. The conflict entered its 12th day amid continued attacks on multiple targets in the region.
Renewed strikes across the region
After heavy bombardments on Tuesday, the combatants renewed attacks early on Wednesday on opposing targets in Israel, Lebanon and the Gulf.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said it fired missiles on Tuesday evening at Qatar’s U.S.-run Al Udeid base and the Al Harir base in Iraq’s Kurdistan. It said this was followed by drone attacks on a gathering of U.S. troops at Al Dhafra air base in the United Arab Emirates and Juffair naval base in Bahrain.
Early on Wednesday, Iranian state media reported another round of attacks was unleashed on U.S. military installations in Bahrain.
A drone struck a major U.S. diplomatic facility in Iraq on Tuesday, but there were no injuries and everyone was accounted for, according to a U.S. official and an internal State Department alert.
Shipping disruption and market reaction
The conflict has effectively blocked vital shipping lanes through the Strait of Hormuz, halting the flow of one-fifth of the world’s fossil energy supplies from the Gulf.
After a surge in crude oil prices on Monday, global energy prices tumbled and stock markets rebounded as investors bet that U.S. President Donald Trump would seek to end the war soon.
The Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday that the International Energy Agency had proposed the largest release of oil reserves in its history to stabilize crude prices, citing officials familiar with the matter. Reuters said it could not immediately verify the report.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps vowed to block oil shipments from the Gulf unless U.S. and Israeli attacks ceased, while air strikes showed no immediate sign of abating.
Maritime incident report
The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations said it received a report of an incident off the UAE coast, with the master of a vessel reporting it sustained damage from a suspected but unknown projectile.
How do you expect the disruption in the Strait of Hormuz to affect energy markets in the coming days?
