A refinery in Haifa, Israel, has been struck in an Iranian attack as Tehran continues to target oil infrastructure in the Middle East.
Iran has reportedly struck the Haifa Oil Refinery, Israel’s largest oil processing facility. There are reports of a mass power outage affecting Haifa following the Iranian strike. There are also reports of a person suffering minor injuries due to falling shrapnel.
The Israeli military (IDF), however, stressed that there were no direct missile impacts at the oil facilities, and added that « the impacts at the oil refineries in Haifa were caused by falling fragments following the interception of an Iranian ballistic missile ». Energy Minister Eli Cohen says that “no significant damage to infrastructure sites” was caused in the attack, The Times of Israel reported.
The refinery is operated by the Bazan Group, has an annual capacity of 9.8 million tons of crude oil, and supply up to 60% of Israel’s transport fuel. The attack on the rifenery is part of Iran’s retaliation after the recent US-Israeli strikes on the country’s military and nuclear sites.
The attack is likely to affect the current cost of oil, which has already been impacted by the tension and conflict in the Middle East. The recent Iran strikes on Qatar’s Ras Laffan LNG hub – which supplies one-fifth of global liquefied natural gas – have triggered a 35% surge in European gas prices and sent oil soaring amid fears of prolonged energy chaos.
Iran has intensified its attacks on oil and gas facilities around the Gulf and on Israel overnight, dramatically raising the stakes in a war that is sending shock waves through the global economy. Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the UAE, also reported attacks on energy sites. Tehran’s targeting of energy production further stressed global supply already under pressure because of Iran’s stranglehold on the Strait of Hormuz, a strategic waterway through which a fifth of the world’s oil is transported.
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Yesterday (March 18), at least three Palestinian women were killed after an Iranian « cluster-style » rocket missed Israel and exploded over the West Bank as the conflict continued.
The victims are thought to be the first Palestinians killed during the most recent war between Israel and the US and Iran. A statement from the Palestinian Red Crescent Society (PRCS) said three women had been killed and 13 others were in a critical condition following the blast.
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