Oil Surges Past $100 a Barrel Amid Middle East Tensions
The price of oil surged past $100 a barrel on Wednesday for the first time in over six weeks after US military strikes destroyed five Iranian tankers and Houthi attacks set ablaze Saudi Aramco's oil facilities.
The strikes, which targeted vessels carrying crude oil from Iran to China, were in response to attempted Iranian missile attacks on a Navy warship. The US Central Command said the vessels were part of a multibillion-dollar shadow network that funds the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and its regional proxies.
Saudi Arabia's oil facilities have been attacked by Houthi forces, further disrupting global oil supplies. The Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that 'behind some of this is clearly the Iranian hand' and that 'the Houthis are in many ways, agents and proxies of the Iranians.'