Washington has expressed its displeasure to Israel over recent strikes targeting Iran’s oil infrastructure, according to a White House statement. The development comes as hostilities between Iran and Israel have continued for around 10 days.
The report said Israel hit Iranian oil refineries and storage depots, triggering large fires and leaving four people dead. Iran responded by shutting the Strait of Hormuz, a move that has pushed crude prices sharply higher, with reports describing the steepest surge in four years.
Although the US and Israel have been conducting operations against Iran since the conflict began on the 28th, a news agency said this marked the first major disagreement between the two allies since the war started. Israel told the US it struck the sites because Iran was using them to fuel vehicles involved in missile launches.
US officials, however, were said to be surprised and unhappy that economic infrastructure was hit on such a scale, especially after Israel had indicated it would focus on military targets. A Trump adviser was quoted as saying the President did not like the attack and preferred protecting oil resources, warning that higher oil prices could hurt people and fuel public discontent.
Israel’s strikes reportedly included three oil depots around Tehran and one refinery. Videos circulated by a news agency showed fast-spreading flames and thick, toxic black smoke, while residents described leaking fuel igniting and flowing like “rivers of fire” on streets, along with black rain mixed with oil and soot; people were also warned to stay indoors amid concerns raised by an acid-rain report.
