U.S. Strikes Iran’s Kharg Island, Threatening Oil Infrastructure as War Enters Third Week

American military hits 90+ targets on Iran's key oil export hub, sparing energy infrastructure for now but warning of future escalation

The United States military carried out a sweeping strike on Iran’s Kharg Island on March 13, hitting more than 90 military targets in what President called one of the most powerful bombing raids in the history of the Middle East — a move that has sent shockwaves through global energy markets and raised fears of a widening conflict.The strikes targeted more than 90 Iranian military sites but spared oil and gas infrastructure at the island, which handles up to 90 percent of Iran’s oil exports. Wikipedia U.S. Central Command said naval mine storage facilities and missile storage bunkers were among the targets destroyed in the “precision strike.”

Announcing the attack on his Truth Social platform late Friday, Donald Trump did not hold back. Trump said the island’s oil infrastructure was spared in the attack but could be struck in the future, warning: “Should Iran, or anyone else, do anything to interfere with the Free and Safe Passage of Ships through the Strait of Hormuz, I will immediately reconsider this decision.” The strike comes as the war launched by the U.S. and Israel on February 28 enters its third week. At least 1,444 people have been killed and 18,551 injured by U.S.-Israeli attacks on Iran since February 28, according to Iran’s Ministry of Health.

Iran responded defiantly. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Iran would respond to any attack on its energy facilities and warned it would target American companies in the region or companies in which the U.S. had shares. Military analysts say the choice of targets on Kharg Island may signal broader strategic intentions beyond the stated goal of pressuring Tehran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.

“The March 13th strikes destroyed the runway, naval base, air defenses, and mine storage, exactly the targets you neutralize before an amphibious or airborne assault.”

defense analyst M Maleki old TIME magazine. Time added that control of the island would grant the U.S. dominant leverage over Iran’s oil sector and freedom of navigation in the northern Persian Gulf.The economic stakes are immense. Petras Katinas, an energy researcher at the Royal United Services Institute, said Kharg Island was critical to funding Iran’s government and military, and that if Iran were to lose control of the island, it would be difficult for the country to function. PBSOn the ground, Iranian officials sought to play down the damage. Ehsan Jahaniyan, the deputy governor of Bushehr, a port city close to Kharg Island, said after the strikes that

“exports, imports and the activities of companies on the island are proceeding normally.”

Trump, meanwhile, signaled the attacks could continue — and escalate. Speaking to NBC News on Saturday, Trump said the U.S. strikes “totally demolished” much of the oil export hub and warned of additional attacks on the island. He also called on allies including China, France, Japan, South Korea and the United Kingdom to deploy warships to help secure the Strait of Hormuz alongside U.S. forces.Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said on Sunday it carried out missile and drone strikes on targets in Israel and three U.S. bases in the region, calling the attacks the first round of retaliation for workers killed in Iran’s industrial areas. With no diplomatic off-ramp yet in sight, the conflict risks spiraling into a broader regional war — with the global economy increasingly caught in the crossfire.