Iran vowed retaliation after the United States and Israel bombed South Pars, Iran's largest gas field, and the natural gas processing complex in Asaluyeh directly connected to it.
On the 18th (local time), Iran President Masoud Pezeshkian said on social media X that "this attack will further complicate the situation and could lead to uncontrollable consequences that will sweep across the world," adding that "such attacks will bring no benefit to the enemies (the United States and Israel)." Iran Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf also foreshadowed retaliation in a "an eye for an eye" manner after the strike on energy facilities, declaring that "a new stage of confrontation has begun."
The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) threatened to attack the energy facilities of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and Qatar. It cited Saudi's Samref refinery and the Jubail petrochemical complex, the UAE's Al Hosn gas field, and Qatar's petrochemical plants. In fact, on this day Iran launched a missile attack on a cluster of gas facilities in Qatar, which accounts for 20% of the world's liquefied natural gas (LNG) supply.
Earlier, Iran's state broadcaster reported that zones 3, 4, 5, and 6 of the South Pars gas field were attacked by the United States and Israel, and that fires at these gas fields halted operations. The processing complex in Asaluyeh, which receives by pipeline and refines and processes natural gas extracted from South Pars, one of the world's largest offshore gas fields, is one of Iran's key energy facilities.
Concerns about escalation have grown as the United States and Israel, which had focused on striking Iran's nuclear, missile, and other military facilities, have now launched wide-ranging attacks on Iran's industrial base. Israel Minister of the Ministry of National Defense Yoav Gallant said the same day that "today, 'significant surprises' are expected across all fronts and the fighting with Iran and Hezbollah in Lebanon will become even more intense."