Trump threatens to blow up Iran’s South Pars gas field if strike against Qatar energy continues

US President Donald Trump warned on Wednesday that the US would “massively detonate the South Pars gas field” if Iran continues to target Qatar’s energy facilities.

Tehran attacked energy facilities in Qatar after Israel bombed Iran’s South Pars gas facility, signaling a sharp escalation in the conflict and sending energy prices skyrocketing.

Qatar said on Wednesday that Iranian missiles had caused “extensive damage” in the industrial city of Ras Laffan, home to the world’s largest liquefied natural gas, or LNG, export facility.

Trump denied any prior knowledge of Israel attacking southern Pars, pushing back against reports that the strike was coordinated and approved by his administration.

In the Stateside Post on Wednesday night, Trump said “the United States knew nothing about this particular attack and the country of Qatar was in no way, shape or form involved with it or had any idea that it was going to happen.”

Trump urged Israel to end its attack on the South Pars gas field unless Iran “unwisely” decides to attack Qatar. In that case, the U.S. will “massively detonate the South Pars gas field with a force and power that Iran has never seen or seen before.”

The attack on South Pars – the world’s largest natural gas deposit shared between Iran and Qatar – is the first time Israel has targeted Iranian natural gas production infrastructure since the conflict began on February 28.

Iran fired ballistic missiles at Qatar’s Ras Laffan industrial city, an attack that caused “extensive damage,” Qatar Energy said, promising to deploy emergency response teams to control fires at the site. No casualties occurred.

Separately, Reuters reported on Thursday that the US government is considering deploying thousands of US troops to the Middle East, raising the prospect of further escalation.

As tensions spiral, world leaders are scrambling to contain the Middle East conflict amid fears of deepening turmoil in global energy markets.

After phone calls with Qatar’s emir and Trump, French President Emmanuel Macron called for an immediate end to targeting civilian infrastructure.

“It is in our common interest to enforce without delay the ban on strikes targeting civilian infrastructure, particularly energy and water supply facilities,” he said in a post on X on Thursday.

German Foreign Minister Johann Wadefuhl on Wednesday warned of a “crisis of serious order” if global supply chains were disrupted, calling for a de-escalation route and a cessation of hostilities after US and Israeli military objectives were achieved, local media reports said.

The United Arab Emirates called the targeting of energy facilities connected to the South Pars field in Iran a “serious escalation” that poses a “direct threat to global energy security” with severe environmental consequences.

The UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs called Iran’s attack on its Habshan gas facility and Bab field a “terrorist attack” that posed a “dangerous escalation” risk.

Majid al-Ansari, spokesman for Qatar’s foreign ministry, described the Israeli attack in southern Pars as a “dangerous and irresponsible step” amid rising regional tensions.

The Gulf nation has declared Iranian military and security attaches and their staff at the Iranian embassy in Doha “persona non grata”, ordering them to leave the country within 24 hours.

Saudi Arabia’s foreign minister, Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud, also appeared to raise his voice, saying “what little trust there was before with Iran has been completely shattered.” Political and non-political responses to Iran remain on the table, he said.

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has threatened to escalate hostilities by targeting oil and gas facilities across the Gulf, after Israel attacked southern Pars. Tehran has also warned Five facilities in Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar “will be targeted in the coming hours.”

In a post on X, Iranian President Masoud Pezheshkian condemned strikes on Iran’s energy infrastructure, saying they could have “uncontrollable consequences, the scope of which could cover the entire world.”

Intensifying attacks on Middle East gas production facilities have deepened energy supply disruptions fueled by the conflict.

Brent is raw May futures were up 4% at $111.77 a barrel as of 10:25 pm ET, but US West Texas Intermediate April futures rose more than 1.3% to $97.56 per barrel.

Oil tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz – a major chokepoint for a fifth of global oil supplies and a significant share of LNG exports – has plummeted since the war began, with the waterway effectively closed to most commercial ships.