Trump says U.S. benefits from high oil prices; Iran, Israel continue to exchange fire

U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday (March 12, 2026) played down the impact of rising oil prices on the American economy and vowed to press ahead with the war, saying he would stop Iran “from having nuclear weapons”, even as U.S. and Israeli forces continued air strikes in Iran and Tehran retaliated with missile and drone attacks across the region.

Also read: West Asia war updates on March 12, 2026

“The United States is the largest Oil Producer in the World, by far, so when oil prices go up, we make a lot of money. But, of far greater interest and importance to me, as President, is stopping an evil Empire, Iran, from having Nuclear Weapons, and destroying the Middle East and, indeed, the World,” Mr. Trump wrote in a social media post.

Mr. Trump had earlier said to hit “Iran harder 20 times more” if the flow of oil through the Strait of Hormuz is blocked. He also threatened to attack Iran’s electricity grid. The Strait of Hormuz remains effectively closed.

Ali Larijani, Secretary of Iran’s National Security Council, responded to Mr. Trump on Wednesday (March 11, 2026), saying if Iran’s electricity grid is targeted, “the whole region will go dark”.

“Trump has said “we can take apart Iran’s electric capacity within one hour, but we have not done it. Well, if they do that, the whole region will go dark in less than half an hour and darkness provides ample opportunity to hunt down US servicemen running for safety,” Mr. Larijani, one of the top officials in charge of running the country, wrote in a social media post.

Iran on Thursday (March 12, 2026) fired five salvos of missiles at Israel, Israeli officials said. Two tankers came under attack near Iraq in the Gulf waters, with Iraqi authorities saying at least one crew member was killed and 38 others were rescued. Drones also hit fuel tanks at Oman’s Salalah port, where operations were subsequently suspended.

Meanwhile, the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) said it struck an Iranian nuclear facility where Tehran had built “critical capabilities in the development of nuclear weapons”. The facility was used for “the development of advanced explosives and for conducting sensitive experiments as part of the AMAD Project,” said the IDF.

The IRGC said in a statement that Thursday’s wave of operations targeted Tel Aviv and “occupied al-Quds” (Jerusalem) as well as the bases of “American terrorist soldiers” in the region.

The operation was executed by firing more than 10 heavy and formidable Khorramshahr missiles with multiple-warhead capabilities, Qadr missiles with multiple-warhead capabilities, Kheybar Shekan missiles with one-ton warheads, Hypersonic Fattah missiles with one-ton warheads, and loitering drones,” it added.

In a separate statement, the IRGC said it had struck a gathering point of American forces on Sheikh Zayed Road and also Ahmed al-Jaber Air Base in Kuwait using the Fattah hypersonic missile.

Iran’s Army spokesman Brigadier General Akraminia, said the destruction of sections of the U.S. radar infrastructure has significantly improved operational conditions for Iranian forces. “With the elimination of part of the enemy’s radar facilities at sensitive centres, continuing the operations has become easier and we now have better access to important and sensitive points,” he was quoted as saying by the state media.