(RTTNews) – Oil prices extended their rally for a fifth consecutive session on Thursday after Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthis claimed an attack on two Saudi oil tankers transiting through the Red Sea, raising fears of further disruption to crude supplies.
Brent crude futures traded up more than 4 percent at $98.27 a barrel amid heightened concerns over potential disruptions to global oil supplies. WTI crude futures were up 3.6 percent at $89.98.
Syed Abbas Araghchi, Iran’s foreign minister, said his country would adopt an “eye for an eye” defense doctrine as the U.S. military carried out a 12th straight night of strikes against Iran.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Wednesday that the U.S. remains open to a diplomatic settlement of the conflict, but Iran is “not serious about talks.”
In a post on Truth Social, President Donald Trump threatened to bomb and destroy one Iranian bridge or power plant any time Iran shoots at a ship in the Strait of Hormuz.
Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei has warned U.S. service members against carrying out orders to attack civilian infrastructure, saying such actions could amount to war crimes.
“A policy that calls for the destruction of bridges and power plants is manifestly unlawful and criminal. It constitutes reprisal and collective punishment,” he said.
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