US forces struck 50+ military targets on Kharg Island hours before Trump’s 8 PM ET deadline, the second attack on Iran’s primary oil export hub since the war began. The Pentagon says oil infrastructure was not targeted, only military installations: bunkers, radar stations, ammunition storage. Kharg handles ~90% of Iran’s crude exports. WTI jumped 3%+ to $115.8 on the news, its highest since April 2008.
Iran retaliated within hours. IRGC struck Saudi Arabia’s Jubail industrial complex with medium-range ballistic missiles and suicide drones, hitting the $20B Sadara joint venture (Aramco-Dow) and ExxonMobil facilities. Saudi air defenses intercepted 11 ballistic missiles over the Eastern Province; debris fell near energy facilities. The King Fahd Causeway linking Saudi Arabia to Bahrain was temporarily closed over the missile threat.
The IRGC issued its most consequential statement of the war: “All precautions in selecting retaliatory targets have been removed.” Gulf partners were warned that restraint exercised “for the sake of good neighborliness” no longer applies. Separately, Iran’s government called on youth to form human chains around power plants ahead of tonight’s deadline. President Pezeshkian claimed 14 million volunteers.
Watch: Whether the 8 PM ET deadline triggers power plant/bridge strikes (bridge strikes already executing via Israel), IRGC follow-through on expanded Gulf targeting, and Brent’s path toward JPMorgan’s $150/bbl scenario.