Iran-Israel War Escalates: Ras Laffan Struck, GCC Under Fire as Tehran Targets Gulf Energy Infrastructure
Iran has launched a sweeping missile and drone assault on Gulf Arab energy infrastructure, striking Qatar's Ras Laffan Industrial City — the world's largest liquefied natural gas facility — and triggering air defence alerts across Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Bahrain, as the now three-week-old US-Israeli war on Iran entered one of its most dangerous phases yet.
According to the Al Jazeera and other international news outlets, the QatarEnergy confirmed on Wednesday evening that Ras Laffan had been hit by Iranian ballistic missiles, causing "extensive damage" and triggering fires that emergency response teams worked to contain. Qatar's Ministry of Defence said its air defences intercepted four of five incoming missiles, with one striking the facility. All personnel were accounted for and no casualties were reported. Qatar's Foreign Ministry condemned the strikes as a "flagrant violation of the state's sovereignty" and accused Iran of pushing the region "towards the abyss."
The attack on Ras Laffan — which accounts for roughly 20 percent of global LNG production — sent immediate shockwaves through energy markets. Brent crude futures jumped to $108.51 per barrel, up nearly five percent, while European natural gas prices surged over six percent to approximately 55 euros per megawatt-hour.
A Region on High Alert
The strikes on Qatar were part of a coordinated Iranian response to earlier US-Israeli attacks on Iran's South Pars gasfield in Bushehr province. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps had issued explicit advance warnings, naming five facilities it intended to target: Saudi Arabia's SAMREF refinery and Jubail petrochemical complex, the UAE's Al Hosn gasfield, and Qatar's Ras Laffan refinery and Mesaieed petrochemical complex.
Saudi Arabia's Ministry of Defence reported intercepting four ballistic missiles heading towards Riyadh, while additional drones were shot down over the country's Eastern Province. The UAE said its air defences had engaged 13 ballistic missiles and 27 drones in a single day, bringing the cumulative tally since the conflict began to 327 ballistic missiles and nearly 1,700 drones. Bahrain reported intercepting 130 Iranian missiles and 234 drones over the course of the conflict. Sirens sounded across Manama, with residents urged to seek shelter. Even an Iraqi air base in Kirkuk was struck, prompting Baghdad to condemn the attack as a direct assault on Iraqi sovereign military assets.
Iran's New Supreme Leader Vows Retribution
The Iranian strikes came as Iran's new Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei publicly vowed retribution following the killing of three senior Iranian security officials in 48 hours. Israeli strikes eliminated Basij commander Gholamreza Soleimani, security chief Ali Larijani, and — in an overnight operation in Tehran — Intelligence Minister Esmaeil Khatib, a hardliner with deep ties to Khamenei who had served decades in civilian intelligence. Israel's Defence Minister Israel Katz confirmed Khatib's killing, saying Netanyahu had authorised the military to strike any senior Iranian official without additional approval, and warned of further "surprises."
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi condemned the assassinations as a "calculated moral collapse," while President Masoud Pezeshkian warned that attacks on Iran's energy infrastructure could lead to "uncontrollable consequences that will affect the entire world."
Broader Battlefield Picture
On the Lebanese front, Hezbollah launched heavy rocket barrages towards northern Israel and the Tel Aviv region, while Israel struck two additional bridges over the Litani River and carried out air raids in Beirut's Basta and Zuqaq al-Blat districts, killing at least ten people and wounding 27. Lebanon's death toll since Israeli operations began on 2 March now stands at 968.
The IAEA confirmed that a structure 350 metres from Iran's Bushehr nuclear reactor was destroyed by a projectile, though the reactor itself sustained no damage. Director General Rafael Grossi stated that any attack near a nuclear facility was a violation of fundamental safety principles and "should never take place."
US Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard told the Senate Intelligence Committee that Iran's conventional military capabilities had been "largely destroyed," though the regime remained intact. US Central Command reported striking more than 7,800 targets and damaging or destroying over 120 Iranian vessels since the war began on 28 February.
Germany's Chancellor Friedrich Merz broke with earlier restraint to tell the Bundestag that Berlin would have advised Washington against launching the campaign, saying there remained "no convincing plan as to how this operation might succeed."
With Gulf energy infrastructure now directly in the line of fire, the conflict has entered a phase that threatens not only regional stability but global energy supply chains — and diplomats in Riyadh and Doha are racing to find an off-ramp before the situation becomes, in Qatar's own words, irreversible.