Haifa refinery in Israel struck in Iran missile attack as Middle East on the brink

Haifa refinery (Image: X)

A refinery in Haifa, Israel, has been struck in an Iranian attack as Tehran continues to target oil infrastructure in the Middle East.

Iran has reportedly struck the Haifa Oil Refinery, Israel’s largest oil processing facility. There are reports of a mass power outage affecting Haifa following the Iranian strike. There are also reports of a person suffering minor injuries due to falling shrapnel.

The refinery is operated by the Bazan Group, has an annual capacity of 9.8 million tons of crude oil, and supply up to 60% of Israel's transport fuel. The attack on the rifenery is part of Iran's retaliation after the recent US-Israeli strikes on the country's military and nuclear sites.

The attack is likely to affect the current cost of oil, which has already been impacted by the tension and conflict in the Middle East. The recent Iran strikes on Qatar's Ras Laffan LNG hub – which supplies one-fifth of global liquefied natural gas – have triggered a 35% surge in European gas prices and sent oil soaring amid fears of prolonged energy chaos.

QatarEnergy confirmed: "Missile hits led to sizeable fires and halted operations." This came while the Strait of Hormuz remains largely closed to tankers. Recently, Tehran also targeted Gulf neighbours, including Kuwaiti refineries, after Israel strikes on Iran's South Pars field.