Tag: Iran

Gulf oil producers have lost an estimated $15.1 billion in revenue since the start of US and Israeli strikes on Iran, as the near-shutdown of the Strait of Hormuz has trapped millions of barrels of crude, refined products, and liquefied natural gas.

Data from commodities analytics firm Kpler shows the Strait typically carries around $1.2 billion worth of energy shipments daily, based on 2025 average prices and volumes. 

Since the escalation of hostilities on February 28, traffic through the critical shipping route has largely halted, with Iranian attacks on vessels and soaring insurance premiums compounding the disruption.

Florian Gruenberger of Kpler described the current flow as “negligible” compared with prewar levels, with crude oil representing 71 percent of the value of stranded shipments.

Saudi Arabia, the region’s largest exporter, has lost the most, with Wood Mackenzie (research company) estimating $4.5 billion in missed revenue, though the kingdom plans to boost exports from the Red Sea in the coming days.

Iraq, which depends on oil for 90 percent of government revenue, is among the most exposed, while Kuwait and Qatar can rely on sovereign wealth funds to offset short-term losses, according to Wood Mackenzie’s Peter Martin.

At least $10.7 billion worth of crude, refined products, and LNG cargoes remain stranded inside the Strait of Hormuz. Some of these shipments had already been sold under prewar contracts, meaning revenue may still materialize depending on payment schedules, which typically occur 15 to 30 days after loading.

Saudi Arabia holds additional oil in overseas storage and could continue supplying customers while benefiting from higher prices that may partly offset lost exports, analysts said. While Saudi Aramco has said it could reroute about 70 percent of crude from its eastern oilfields to the Red Sea via its east-west pipeline, experts warn the system has never operated at that capacity.

Wood Mackenzie estimates that Gulf oil producers — including Saudi Arabia, Iraq, the UAE, Kuwait, and Bahrain — have collectively deferred $13.3 billion in sales and tax revenue. 

QatarEnergy, Qatar’s state-owned energy company, has lost an estimated $571 million in revenue since halting production on March 2, excluding potential losses from delayed expansions or new plants.

Someone is trying to frame Tehran for unclaimed strikes and drone attacks on Turkiye and at least one United Kingdom (UK) military base in Cyprus, it has emerged.

As per the details, the Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA) has quoted senior military leadership as saying that Iran did not carry out any missile strikes in Turkiye as the country respects its sovereignty.

The clarification came hours after the UK’s Ministry of Defence confirmed that a Shahed-like drone that targeted Royal Air Force’s (RAF) Akrotiri base in Cyprus on March 2 was not launched from Iranian territory. 

The ministry added that RAF Typhoon and F-35B jets continued defensive air operations across the Middle East, supported by Voyager air-to-air refuelling, and that the UK had resupplied air defence systems to British and allied bases.

Royal Navy Wildcat helicopters armed with Martlet missiles are also expected to arrive in Cyprus in the coming days.

Amid confusion over unclaimed strikes, American commentator Tucker Carlson has claimed that Mossad operatives were arrested in Qatar and Saudi Arabia while planning bombings, suggesting these operations could be aimed at creating disorder and framing Iran to draw Gulf states further into conflict.

Saudi experts told Al Arabiya News that Mossad agents had been arrested in both countries and were reportedly planning false-flag bombings to involve the Gulf states in war with Iran.

Earlier, Iranian officials, quoted by Middle East Eye, also said that some attacks on Gulf energy sites, including oil refineries and ports, were carried out by Israel to provoke Gulf countries. 

The reports also sent social media intro frenzy as thousands on X claimed Israel was covertly launching suicide drones targeting Gulf countries and NATO, intending to blame Iran.

Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Esmail Baghaei also told Drop Site that Israel had historically used such tactics to involve other nations in conflict, citing a high probability of misuse in the current situation. 

Cypriot officials suggested the Akrotiri drone (an Iranian-designed Shahed type) was most likely launched by Hezbollah from Lebanon rather than Iran.

Iranian human rights activist and 2023 Nobel Peace Prize winner Narges Mohammadi has been sentenced to more than seven years in prison, her lawyers and supporting organizations confirmed.

Mohammadi, 53, had been on a week-long hunger strike that ended Sunday, according to the Narges Foundation. She informed her lawyer, Mostafa Nili, in a phone call from prison that she received her sentence on Saturday.

“She has been sentenced to six years in prison for gathering and collusion to commit crimes,” Nili told AFP. In addition, she received a one-and-a-half-year sentence for propaganda activities and will be exiled for two years to Khosf, in the eastern province of South Khorasan. A two-year ban on leaving the country was also imposed.

Nili noted that the verdict is not final and could be appealed. He expressed hope that Mohammadi could be temporarily released on bail to receive medical treatment due to her health concerns.

The activist began her hunger strike on February 2 to protest prison conditions and the restrictions preventing her from contacting lawyers and family. “Narges Mohammadi ended her hunger strike today on its 6th day, while reports indicate her physical condition is deeply alarming,” the foundation said.

Mohammadi was reportedly transferred to a hospital three days ago because of her deteriorating health but was returned to the Ministry of Intelligence’s detention center in Mashhad before completing her treatment.

 “Her continued detention is life threatening and a violation of human rights laws,” the foundation said.

Mohammadi is the second Iranian woman to receive the Nobel Peace Prize, following Shirin Ebadi in 2003, recognized for her work promoting democracy and human rights.

A prolific writer and journalist, Mohammadi serves as deputy director of the Defenders of Human Rights Center (DHRC), an organization dedicated to defending political prisoners and advancing human rights reforms in Iran. 

She has been a vocal campaigner against the death penalty and corruption and has spent two decades fighting for women’s rights, earning her recognition as a symbol of freedom by the Nobel Committee in 2023.

Mohammadi was arrested on December 12 after criticizing the suspicious death of lawyer Khosrow Alikordi. Prosecutor Hasan Hematifar stated that Mohammadi made provocative remarks at Alikordi’s memorial in Mashhad, encouraging attendees “to chant norm-breaking slogans” and “disturb the peace.”

The United States has issued a fresh security warning for its citizens in Iran, urging them to leave the country immediately as diplomatic tensions between Washington and Tehran escalate ahead of planned talks in Oman.

In an alert released early Friday, the US Virtual Embassy in Iran advised American nationals to arrange departures without relying on US government assistance, underscoring growing concerns about the security situation on the ground.

The warning comes hours before US and Iranian officials are due to hold talks in Muscat, though expectations for progress remain low amid unresolved disagreements over the meeting’s scope and agenda.

US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, US President Donald Trump’s son-in-law, are expected to represent Washington, while Iran’s delegation will be led by Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, according to officials on both sides.

If held as planned, the meeting would mark the first formal engagement between the two countries since tensions surged last June, when a brief but intense conflict with Israel prompted US airstrikes that damaged Iran’s key nuclear facilities.

However, lingering disputes over the venue and substance of the talks have raised doubts about their outcome, with the possibility of US military action still looming.

Washington has reportedly pressed Tehran to dismantle its stockpile of enriched uranium, curb its ballistic missile program, and halt support for armed groups across the Middle East. US President Trump has repeatedly warned that failure to meet US demands could trigger military strikes.

Iran has rejected the conditions, calling them a violation of its sovereignty, and has warned it would retaliate against any attack by targeting US forces in the region as well as Israel.

The diplomatic push unfolds against a backdrop of heightened regional tension, with the US significantly reinforcing its military presence in the Gulf. Trump has described the deployment led by the aircraft carrier Abraham Lincoln as a “massive armada” sent ahead of the talks.

The negotiations were initially planned for Istanbul, with Turkey playing a mediating role and several regional foreign ministers expected to attend. 

Tensions have also been fuelled by domestic unrest in Iran following nationwide protests earlier this year. Human rights groups say security forces responded with lethal force, killing thousands of demonstrators.

While Trump had earlier threatened to intervene in support of protesters, the US ultimately refrained from taking direct military action, opting instead for diplomatic engagement amid growing international scrutiny.

Nobel laureate Malala Yousafzai has expressed her support for the women and girls of Iran amid ongoing nationwide protests.

The activist said that the demonstrations sparked initially by economic distress and the rapid devaluation of the Iranian rial “cannot be separated from the long-standing, state-imposed restrictions on girls’ and women’s autonomy, in all aspects of public life, including education.”

Malala stated: “Iranian girls demand a life with dignity”. 

Yousafzai highlighted the personal risks Iranians have taken to raise awareness about the repression, noting that “their voices have been silenced for decades.” She described the restrictions on women as part of a broader system of gendered control marked by “segregation, surveillance, and punishment.”

“The women of Iran demand their voices be heard and the right to determine their political future,” Yousafzai said. 

She emphasized that this future should be shaped by the leadership of Iranian women and girls rather than by outside forces or oppressive regimes.

She concluded her statement by saying, “I stand with the people and girls of Iran in their call for freedom and dignity. They deserve to determine their own future.”

Yousafzai has previously spoken out on Iran, most recently in December when she joined the Norwegian Nobel Committee in condemning the arrest of fellow laureate Narges Mohammadi.

She has also shared Amnesty International’s criticism of the UK for detaining Greta Thunberg during her protest against Israeli actions in Gaza.

In recent months, Yousafzai has increasingly focused on the Middle East. In September, her Malala Fund pledged $100,000 to assist Palestinian refugees, and the organisation has since committed another $300,000 to support girls’ education and provide emergency relief in Gaza, Sudan, and the Democratic Republic of Congo.