The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) have carried out this Monday an attack against Iran's main petrochemical complex, located in Asaluyeh, in the vicinity of the South Pars gas field, according to Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz.
In a video message, the head of Defense has confirmed the operation and has assured that the bombing has left "out of service" this facility that, according to Israel's calculations, is responsible for processing around 50% of the country's petrochemical products.
The attack occurred simultaneously with the launch of missiles against another nearby plant, which, according to Israeli authorities, implies that Israel has managed to disable about 85% of the Islamic Republic's petrochemical production capacity. "This represents an economic blow of billions of dollars for the Iranian regime," Katz pointed out.
The minister has added that, together with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, they have given instructions to the Israeli Army to continue with "high-intensity" offensives against Tehran's "national infrastructures."
Meanwhile, Iranian authorities have condemned the attack against the Asaluyeh petrochemical complex. "The Israeli-American coalition launched attacks on Monday against petrochemical facilities in Asaluyeh, the energy hub of southern Iran, specifically targeting the Jam and Damavand petrochemical plants," Mehr news agency reported.
These facilities are located next to the South Pars gas field, considered the largest on the planet, which was already attacked by Israel last March 18.
This new escalation occurs while Iran exhausts the deadline set by the United States to close an agreement aimed at stopping the war in exchange for the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, an understanding that now seems even more remote after Tehran has rejected Donald Trump's ultimatums, considering them "incompatible" with the possibility of maintaining negotiations.