Iran Hits Back Hard: Missiles Fly at US Base, Oil Nears $100 as Gulf War Boils Over
AT A GLANCE
- Iran fired missiles at a US-linked base in Jordan; Jordan says it shot down 18 of 20
- IRGC claims it hit 10 ships, including two US vessels and eight oil tankers
- US Central Command says it sank five Iranian tankers a day earlier
- Houthi strikes on Saudi Arabia injured 73 people and torched oil sites
- Brent crude is closing in on $100 a barrel
A month of relative quiet in the Iran-US conflict just ended, and energy markets are feeling it immediately.
Six months into the war, Wednesday brought the sharpest escalation yet. Iran struck a Jordanian base and multiple ships in the Gulf hours after the US destroyed five of its oil tankers. Oil is surging as a result.
KEY DETAILS
The IRGC says it launched ballistic missiles at Al Azraq base and targeted 10 vessels near the Strait of Hormuz, including two American ships. Jordan reports its air defenses caught 18 of 20 incoming missiles, with the rest landing in empty areas – no injuries reported. Washington calls the strikes ineffective and says all its troops are safe. A day earlier, CENTCOM destroyed five Iranian tankers, tying it directly to Iran’s repeated attempts to hit a US Navy warship.
MARKET REACTION
Brent crude is pushing toward $100 a barrel, driven by fears that Hormuz traffic, a critical global oil artery, could seize up entirely.
Add Tuesday’s Houthi assault on Saudi Arabia, which wounded 73 people and hit oil infrastructure, and you get a region-wide supply shock hitting from multiple directions at once. For traders, that’s volatility with real staying power.
Watch Hormuz shipping data and any US response to the Jordan strike; both could decide where oil heads next.
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Source: Reuters
