Live updates: Oil rises to $110 as Israel strikes Iran during Persian new year
Brent crude hits $110 after Israeli airstrikes target Iranian sites during Nowruz holidays, escalating Middle East supply risks.
Image: GlobalBeat / 2026
Oil surges to $110 after Israel strikes Iran during Nowruz
Brent crude jumped to $110 per barrel on Thursday after Israeli missiles hit multiple sites across Iran during the Persian New Year holiday.
The 6.2 percent price spike marked the highest oil level since October 2022, according to Refinitiv data.
The attack unfolded hours after Israel’s cabinet convened in Jerusalem and ended weeks of speculation over retaliation for Iran’s April 13 drone and missile barrage.
Iranian state television reported explosions at military facilities in Isfahan province at 2:30 a.m. local time and showed images of interception trails. The Israeli military declined to comment.
Oil traders reacted within minutes. “Brent front-month contracts leapt $6.44 after Tehran confirmed blasts,” RBC analyst Helima Croft told clients. Global benchmark futures later eased to $108.90.
Isfahan hosts Iranian uranium-enrichment halls and drone assembly lines, according to the International Atomic Energy Agency. The United States received advance notice of the operation but took no part, two U.S. officials said.
Washington urged restraint. “We do not seek escalation,” Secretary of State Antony Blinken told reporters in Rome. President Joe Biden met national-security aides in the Situation Room for 90 minutes, the White House said.
FlightRadar24 showed at least 12 commercial carriers diverting around Iranian airspace after the strikes. Dubai-based Emirates cancelled two Tehran flights.
Tehran’s stock exchange fell 2.8 percent, while Saudi petrochemical shares gained. Goldman Sachs raised its third-quarter Brent forecast to $104.
Background
Israel and Iran have exchanged fire through proxies for decades but rarely targeted one another directly. Tensions escalated after an Israeli strike on an Iranian diplomatic compound in Damascus killed 7 Revolutionary Guards on April 1.
Iran responded with more than 300 drones and missiles, most shot down by Israel and allies. It was the first direct Iranian assault on Israel from Iranian soil.
What’s Next
The U.N. Security Council scheduled closed-door talks for Friday. European Union foreign ministers meet in Luxembourg on Monday and will consider additional sanctions on Tehran.
Analysts warned that any Iranian counter-strike on Israeli energy or export infrastructure could push Brent past $120, raising gasoline prices ahead of the U.S. summer driving season.