Oil prices surge, US crude surpasses $116! Saudi petrochemical facilities attacked, U.S. media: Ceasefire agreement "hope fading"

CCTV News reports: In local time on April 6, the U.S. Central Command said that since it launched military operations against Iran on February 28, the U.S. military has struck more than 13,000 targets in Iran, and more than 155 Iranian naval vessels have been damaged or destroyed.

On local time on the 7th, a reporter from the China Media Group learned that Iran’s Red Crescent Society reported that a residential area in Tehran was attacked, and that Red Crescent rescue personnel are carrying out rescue efforts.

It is reported that multiple rescue and medical vehicles have arrived at the attacked residential area, and medical and rescue personnel are carrying out rescue efforts for local residents. In addition, several buildings have collapsed on a large scale, and rescue personnel are searching and rescuing people amid the rubble.

Israel destroys Iran’s largest petrochemical plant

Saudi petrochemical facilities attacked; oil prices rise

According to Xinhua News Agency, Israeli media reported on the 6th that on the 5th, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke by phone with U.S. President Donald Trump, urging the U.S. not to agree to a ceasefire with Iran during the current stage of the war.

The report cited an Israeli official as saying that during the call, Netanyahu expressed “concerns about the possibility that the U.S. may reach a ceasefire agreement with Iran, and even pointed out the risks of doing so.”

The report said that during the call, Trump told Netanyahu that if Iran agrees to the U.S.’s demands, a ceasefire could be achieved. Trump said he would not give up the demand that Iran hand over all enriched uranium, and he would not allow Iran to resume uranium enrichment activities.

Separately, according to Israeli media, Netanyahu said at a cabinet meeting on the 5th that even if the U.S. reaches a ceasefire agreement with Iran, Israel would not be required to stop its military actions against Hezbollah in Lebanon.

On the 6th, Netanyahu issued a video statement, confirming the phone call made with Trump on the 5th. Netanyahu said that Israel had destroyed Iran’s largest petrochemical plant, “systematically dismantling the money-making machine of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.” Israel will also continue to “clear out” senior Iranian officials.

In the early hours of the 7th, Iran’s Fars News Agency, citing unnamed sources, reported that an explosion occurred that day in the Jubail industrial zone in the northeastern part of Saudi Arabia, in which U.S. capital is involved, and that it was the result of wide-ranging strikes.

The report said that the Jubail industrial zone is one of the world’s important petrochemical production bases. Its annual output is about 60 million tons of petrochemical products, accounting for 6% to 8% of global total production. Several major petrochemical companies and projects are concentrated within the zone. Among them, Saudi Basic Industries Corporation is one of the main investors in the industrial zone. In addition, the Sadara project, which involves participation from U.S. Dow Chemical Company, as well as projects jointly invested by Saudi Aramco and French TotalEnergies, are also located in the industrial zone.

In terms of the market, crude oil prices rose sharply. As of the time of publication, Brent crude was up more than 1%, and WTI crude was up more than 3%, surpassing $116.

U.S. media: “hope fading” for a U.S.-Iran ceasefire agreement

The Wall Street Journal reported on the 6th that mediators were pessimistic that Iran would “yield” before the last deadline set by U.S. President Donald Trump for it, and would reopen the Strait of Hormuz, and that the U.S.-Iran ceasefire agreement has “hope fading.”

The report said that some U.S. officials stated that before Trump’s last deadline—20:00 Eastern Time on the 7th—U.S. positions were “too far apart to narrow.” At the same time, citing Arab officials familiar with the situation, it said that Iranian officials have told mediators that even if negotiations with the U.S. make progress, they expect the U.S. to continue attacking Iran, and Israel will also continue launching airstrikes against Iran to “clear out” senior Iranian officials.

The report cited remarks from some U.S. officials saying that privately, Trump was “not as optimistic” about an agreement being reached between the U.S. and Iran. He is expected to issue the final order to strike Iran on the evening of the 7th Eastern Time, but Trump’s thinking could change at any time depending on how the situation develops. Trump wants to end the war, and he recognizes that the U.S. public has limited patience for further military actions.

The report said Egypt, Turkey, and Pakistan are conveying messages from the U.S. to Iran through diplomatic channels and their intelligence agencies. “One complicating factor is that the mediators from these countries overlap with the parties in Iran they are communicating with. Another complicating factor is that the deaths of many senior Iranian officials and attacks on the Iranian government’s communications infrastructure make it difficult for the U.S. to determine who on the Iranian side it should negotiate with and how to contact them.”

The report also cited U.S. and Middle East officials as saying that any decisions on negotiations are made by Iran’s Supreme National Security Council and the commander-in-chief of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, Ahmad Vahidi. The heads of the intelligence departments of Egypt and Turkey and Pakistan’s Army chief of staff are focusing their mediation efforts on Vahidi and other senior intelligence officials of the Revolutionary Guard Corps.

（Source: Economic Daily News）