Donald Trump has stated that the US military has bombed a small island off the Iranian coast that is home to a significant oil terminal, which is regarded as the economic lifeline of the nation. The US president said Kharg Island's military facilities were "totally obliterated" but that it had held off targeting its oil infrastructure.
However, Trump warned that if Iran or others "do anything to interfere" with the safe passage of ships through the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world's most important shipping channels south of Iran's coast, he would reconsider his decision not to target oil facilities on the island. If Kharg's oil infrastructure were attacked, the Iranian military said that companies working with the US' energy and oil infrastructure would "immediately be destroyed."
Donald Trump has stated that the US military has bombed a small island off the Iranian coast that is home to a significant oil terminal, which is regarded as the economic lifeline of the nation. The US president said Kharg Island's military facilities were "totally obliterated" but that it had held off targeting its oil infrastructure.
Trump, however, warned that he would reconsider the decision not to target oil facilities on the island should Iran or others "do anything to interfere" with the safe passage of ships through the Strait of Hormuz - one of the world's most important shipping channels, located south of Iran's coast.
If Kharg's oil infrastructure were attacked, the Iranian military said that companies working with the US' energy and oil infrastructure would "immediately be destroyed."
Why is Kharg Island important to Iran?
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| Iran's largest terminal- Kharg Island (Image: BBC) |
Kharg Island is a small rocky outcrop that can be found just 15 nautical miles (24 kilometers) off Iran's coast. Despite its size, it is one of Iran's most important energy infrastructure components. It would be like targeting Iran's economic jugular vein were the United States to attack this tiny but crucial island in the northern Gulf. Ninety percent of Iran's crude oil comes through a terminal on the island - transported through pipes from the mainland.
The oil can be picked up by very big tankers that can carry up to 85 million gallons of oil up to the long jetties on the island. Unlike the mainland's shallower coast, the island's coast is close enough to deep waters. The tankers then return to China, the primary buyer of Iranian oil, via the Strait of Hormuz and the Gulf. A terminal for the export of Iranian oil, the island provides a major source of revenue for the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).
What has the US and Iran said about the attack?
"Executed one of the most powerful bombing raids in the History of the
Middle East and totally obliterated every MILITARY target in Iran's crown jewel, Kharg Island," Trump declared on Friday. He went on to say that he had "chosen NOT to wipe out the Oil Infrastructure on the Island" "for reasons of decency."
US Central Command said US forces had struck "more than 90 Iranian military targets on Kharg Island, while preserving the oil infrastructure".
It claimed to have destroyed numerous military sites, including naval mine storage facilities, missile storage bunkers, and others. The oil facilities on the island were not damaged, according to Iranian state media. According to the
Fars news agency, the US attacked an airport control tower, a helicopter hangar, a naval base, and air defenses. "no military personnel, oil company employees, or island residents suffered casualties in the attack, and all sectors are continuing their routine activities," stated Ehsan Jahanian, political deputy to the governor of Bushehr province in southern Iran. According to a report published by the
Tasnim news agency, which is affiliated with the IRGC, Jahanian stated that the process of exporting oil from Kharg was "fully under way" and that "activities of companies based on the island are continuing without interruption." Following the strikes, the nation's military issued a warning that, in the event of an attack on its energy facilities, oil and energy infrastructure owned by US-collaborating businesses would "immediately be destroyed and turned into a pile of ashes."
Why didn't the US target the island's oil facilities?
Iran would suffer greatly if the island's infrastructure were destroyed by military action. Additionally, it would result in a significant escalation of the conflict. It would probably send oil prices all over the world even higher, and Iran might also target more Middle Eastern oil infrastructure. Iran still has the capability to launch a large number of low-cost, high-explosive drones at its Gulf Arab neighbors and shipping vessels two weeks into the war. It could possibly broaden those objectives to include essential infrastructure like
desalination plants, which provide millions of people with drinking water.
The bombing, according to military analyst and former British Army officer
Justin Crump, was Trump's attempt to prevent Iran from further escalating the conflict. "He's showing it as being merciful but saying he could be more punishing to the IRGC" by targeting the oil facilities, Crump, who is also CEO of intelligence consultancy Sibylline, told BBC Radio 4' s Today programme.
Trump previously stated that the goal of the war was for the Iranian people to revolt against the Islamic Republic's government. Crump said it was "difficult" to target the island's oil infrastructure because it would destroy the country's economic lifeline for a long time, though he has since stated other reasons for the war. He said, "That doesn't really say much for their [the Iranian people's] future." He also said that the island's oil infrastructure took a long time to rebuild after it was destroyed in the
Iran-Iraq war in the 1980s.
Will the United States try to take the island?
It has been rumored that US forces might attempt to take over Kharg Island at some point. It seizure would not only choke off Iran's oil exports but could also provide a platform from which to carry out attacks against the mainland.
US media reports that amphibious ships carrying up to 5,000 Marines and sailors are now being sent to the Gulf, adding to that speculation.
There has been no response from the Pentagon. According to security analyst
Mikey Kay of the BBC's Security Brief, taking the island would effectively cut off the IRGC's economic lifeline, affecting its capacity to wage war.
Source: BBC
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