Trump vows no more attacks by Israel on Iran gas field after it ‘violently lashed out’
(Corrected the number of countries meeting in Riyadh to 12 instead of six, and changed the description in paragraph 18 from “Islamic” to “Muslim majority”)
By Andrew Mills and Timour Azhari
DOHA/RIYADH, March 19 (Reuters) – U.S. President Donald Trump said an angry Israel had “violently attacked” Iran’s major gas field, marking a significant escalation in the U.S.-Israeli war, but ruled out such Israeli attacks would continue unless Iran retaliated.
Wednesday’s attack on the massive South Pars gas field sent oil prices soaring and prompted Iran to threaten to attack oil and gas targets across the Gulf while launching missiles at Qatar and Saudi Arabia.
The escalation is compounding unprecedented disruptions to global energy supplies, raising political risks for Trump, who joined Israel in attacking Iran nearly four weeks ago.
Qatar’s state oil giant QatarEnergy reported “major damage” after Iranian missiles hit the Ras Laffan Industrial City, which processes about a fifth of global gas supplies.
Saudi Arabia said it intercepted and destroyed four ballistic missiles launched towards Riyadh on Wednesday and an attempted drone attack on a gas facility in its east.
On Thursday, Iran once again targeted Qatar’s gas facilities and its missiles targeted the Saudi capital.
QatarEnergy said “major fires” and extensive damage were caused to several liquefied natural gas (LNG) facilities that were the target of missile strikes early on Thursday.
Trump stated that the United States had no prior knowledge of Israel’s attack, adding that Qatar was not involved in the incident.
“Israel, angry at what is happening in the Middle East, violently attacked a major facility in Iran known as the South Pars Gas Field,” Trump wrote on channel X on Wednesday.
“Unfortunately, Iran did not know this and related facts about the South Pars attack and unjustly and unjustly attacked part of Qatar’s LNG Gas facility.
“There will be NO FURTHER ATTACKS BY ISRAEL on this extremely important and valuable South Pars Field unless Iran unwisely decides to attack, in this case a very innocent Qatar.
“In this case, the United States, with or without Israeli assistance or consent, will massively blow up the entire South Pars Gas Field with a force and power that Iran has never seen or witnessed before.”
Previously, the Wall Street Journal wrote that Trump approved Israel’s plan to attack Iran’s natural gas field.
South Pars is the Iranian sector of the world’s largest natural gas field, which Iran shares with Qatar, a close US ally and home to the US’s largest military base in the Gulf.
Since the beginning of the conflict, Tehran has targeted not only Israel but also US diplomatic and military facilities in the Gulf and warned its neighbors against hosting attacks on Iran.
With no deescalation in sight, Trump is considering sending thousands more U.S. troops to the Middle East, according to a U.S. official and three people familiar with the planning.
These troops can be used to ensure the safe passage of oil tankers through the Strait of Hormuz, the transit point for one-fifth of the world’s oil trade.
ISLAMIC FOREIGN MINISTERS CONDEMNED IRANIAN ATTACKS
Foreign ministers of 12 Muslim-majority countries gathered in Riyadh condemned Iran’s attacks on its Gulf neighbors and called for an immediate halt.
In their statement, the ministers said that Iran’s targeting of residential areas and civilian infrastructure such as oil facilities, airports and desalination plants cannot be justified under any circumstances.
“This pressure from Iran will backfire politically and morally, and we reserve the right to take military action if deemed absolutely necessary,” Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan said at a press conference after diplomats met in Riyadh. he said.
While the ministers were meeting for a consultation meeting on the Iran war, interceptors were seen firing near the Riyadh hotel where the conference was held.
The UAE shut down the Habshan gas plant after the foreign ministry intercepted missiles fired by Iran in what it called a “terrorist attack”.
US-based Iranian human rights group HRANA estimates that more than 3,000 people have been killed in Iran since US-Israeli attacks began on February 28.
Authorities in Lebanon say 900 people have been killed there and 800,000 have been forced to flee their homes.
Iranian attacks have killed people in Iraq and the Gulf states, and at least 13 U.S. service members have been killed in the war.
(Reporting by Andrew Mills in Doha and Timour Azhari in Riyadh; Additional reporting by Reuters bureaus; Writing by Jonathan Allen and Michael Perry; Editing by Clarence Fernandez)
