The US has attacked the Iranian island of Kharq. Iran's largest oil terminal is located there

The US carried out "one of the most powerful bombings in the history of the Middle East" by attacking Iran's Kharq Island in the Persian Gulf. This was stated by US President Donald Trump on the social network Truth Social. Kharq Island is home to Iran's largest oil terminal, through which the vast majority of the country's crude exports pass. The oil infrastructure was not the target of the strike, Trump claimed.

"Moments ago, [U.S. Armed Forces] Central Command conducted one of the most powerful bombing raids in the history of the Middle East and completely destroyed all WAR targets on Iran's crown jewel, Kharq Island. [...] For reasons of decency, I have decided NOT to wipe out the oil infrastructure on the island," the US president wrote.

Trump threatened, "If Iran or anyone else tries to interfere with the 'free and safe' movement of ships through the Strait of Hormuz, I will immediately reconsider that decision [not to attack Iran's oil facilities]."

Trump's announcement was published at 23:54 CET - nearly an hour after Brent crude futures ended trading on the Intercontinental Exchange (ICE). Brent rose 2.7% to $103.1 per barrel at the end of trading on Friday, March 13. American oil WTI added 3.11% in price and reached $98.71 per barrel.

In recent years, more than 2 million barrels of oil per day have passed through the terminal on Kharq Island - with all Iranian exports estimated at 3.3-3.5 million barrels per day, Bloomberg wrote. The FT claimed that about nine out of ten barrels of oil the country exports passes through the island.

Iranian oil, as well as the raw materials of other Persian Gulf countries, was exported by sea through the Strait of Hormuz, but after the outbreak of war with the U.S., Iran actually blocked this most important artery for the world market. Before the war, about 20-25% of the global flow of raw materials passed through it.

JPMorgan warned that the shock to the global oil market could intensify if the U.S. and Israel decided to seize Iran's port on Kharq Island. Axios reported that Washington was discussing the option of an attack on the island. A direct strike on Kharq would "immediately halt the bulk of Iran's oil exports," which would likely lead to "serious retaliation" by Iran in the Strait of Hormuz or against the energy infrastructure of the Persian Gulf countries, the bank's strategists said.

An additional factor in the importance of the island is China: most of Iran's oil exports go there, the FT wrote.

The prospect of a US takeover of the island is considered an extremely high risk from a geopolitical and economic point of view, CNBC noted on Friday (its text was published before Trump's announcement of the attack). An attempt to attack or seize the island would require a ground operation, from which the US has so far refrained, and would also trigger a sustained increase in the already rapidly rising oil prices, the channel argued, citing analysts' opinions.

This article was AI-translated and verified by a human editor