Military sites and 90% of crude oil trade: Why is Iranian island struck by US important

Tehran has warned of harsh retaliation if its key energy hub is targeted

US forces have struck military facilities on Kharg Island off Iran’s coast, with US President Donald Trump warning that a major oil terminal there might also be attacked if Tehran continues to block the Strait of Hormuz.

Iranian authorities have responded by promising to target US-linked oil infrastructure in the Persian Gulf if that happens.

The tiny island is responsible for processing some 90% of Iran’s crude exports, and remained untouched during the first two weeks of the US and Israeli war on the country, which led to oil prices soaring worldwide.

On Friday, Trump announced that the US has “totally obliterated every military target in Iran’s crown jewel, Kharg Island.” The president claimed that he chose not to target the oil infrastructure this time, but cautioned that “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.”

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According to the US military, more than 90 targets on Kharg Island were hit, including naval mine storage facilities, missile depots and other military sites.

Iranian state media, however, reported 15 explosions on the island, with the strikes being aimed at air defense systems, a naval base, an airport control tower and a helicopter hangar. The oil terminal remains unaffected, it stressed.

On Saturday, Trump reiterated his threat, telling NBC News that “we may hit it (Kharg island) a few more times just for fun.”

Key to Iran’s economy

An attack on the oil facilities would represent a major escalation. Despite being only 20 square kilometers in size, Kharg Island plays a crucial role in the Iranian economy, handling almost all of the country’s crude exports. These strikes threaten to deepen the global energy crisis even further as, according to Reuters, Iran supplies about 4.5% of the world’s oil.

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The oil terminal is located on a coral outcrop, sitting around 25 kilometers (15 miles) from the coast. It was built by the American company Amoco before the 1979 Islamic Revolution drove a major wedge between the US and Iran. The location was chosen because the shallow waters off the country’s shores made it problematic for large tanker ships to enter the ports on the mainland.

Pipelines deliver crude from the oilfields across Iran to Kharg Island, which is often referred to by the public as the “forbidden island” because of the tight security around it.

Satellite images have shown the terminal at the island working around the clock during the conflict as Iran continues to ship oil to China, despite closing the Strait of Hormuz to vessels from most other countries.

Iran once exported 1.5 million barrels per day. However, because of the sanctions, deliveries spiked in the run up to the US and Israeli attack. It started exporting more than 2 million barrels daily and sometimes saw volumes reach 3.7 million barrels, according to data from Kpler trade analyst.

Kharg Island also hosts an oil storage facility with an estimated capacity of 30 million liters, which is currently around 60% full, Kpler said.

Tehran warns of retaliation

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Following Friday’s attack, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) vowed to set the oil and gas infrastructure in the Gulf “on fire” if energy sites on Kharg Island are struck.

On Saturday, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told MS Now that “our armed forces have already stated that they will retaliate if our oil and energy infrastructure is attacked. They will strike any energy facility in the region that belongs to or is partially owned by an American company.”

Is a US ground operation possible?

The strikes on Kharg Island are also likely to complicate Trump’s plans to put a friendly government in power in Iran in order to benefit from its oil sector, like the US has been doing in Caracas since the kidnapping of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro in early January.

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Rumors have emerged in recent days of Washington preparing a ground operation to capture energy infrastructure on the island, fueled by the announcement that a rapid response US marine unit of about 2,500 troops will be deployed to the Middle East.

The US president told Fox News that boots on the ground was “one of so many different things” considered by his administration. “It’s not high on the list, but it’s one of so many different things, and I can change my mind in seconds,” he said.

Trump first spoke about the seizure of Kharg Island in 1988. “I’d be harsh on Iran. They’ve been beating us psychologically, making us look like a bunch of fools. One bullet shot at one of our men or ships, and I’d do a number on Kharg Island. I’d go in and take it,” he said at the time.

Military experts have been warning that the ground operation would be an extremely risky affair. Even if the US marines are able to capture the island, holding on to it would be problematic due to its proximity to the mainland and its flat surface, which would provide almost no cover from the Iranian drones, missiles or artillery.