Large fire breaks out at Tehran oil facility
Large plumes of smoke rise from an inferno at the Shahran oil depot in Tehran after an Israeli air strike.
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News.com.au
18 minutes ago
- News.com.au
Economic fallout from Middle East conflict ‘inevitable', Deputy PM says
Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles says it is 'inevitable' Australians will pay more for fuel as the conflict between nuclear-armed Israel and Iran escalates. The long-time foes continued trading deadly strikes overnight, with civilian deaths reported by both sides. In Iran, emergency crews have been battling blazes at several major oil and gas facilities after the Israeli military hit them. State media has also reported damage to military sites across the Islamic republic, including the defence ministry's headquarters in the capital Tehran. Meanwhile, Iran has targeted the Israeli port city of Haifa as well as residential areas in southern Israel and vowed to continue to intensify attacks. Mr Marles said on Monday the Albanese government was 'very concerned' by the rapidly escalating conflict and repeated Canberra's call for 'both parties to focus on diplomacy and dialogue'. 'In making that call, we are joining voices from the United States, from the United Kingdom, Germany, France and many other countries around the world which are also urging the parties to engage in restraint and to focus on diplomacy and dialogue precisely because we are worried about this escalating into a wider conflict,' he told the ABC. The price of Brent crude oil – the oil benchmark with the strongest sway on Australia's fuel prices – jumped 4 per cent on Sunday evening to $US77 (A$118) per barrel. It came on top of the 8 per cent surge on Friday when Israel launched its 'pre-emptive' attack targeting Iran's nuclear program. Mr Marles said the extent of the impact hostilities would have on Australia's economy 'depends a bit on how long the conflict goes and the way in which it plays out'. But he said it was 'right to focus on fuel'. 'And already we have seen over the course of the last few days the global oil price go up and it's the inevitable consequence of any conflict,' Mr Marles said. 'We saw this with the war in Ukraine, that does disrupt global supply chains and that has an economic impact around the world. 'So, we are very much monitoring that closely to see what the ultimate impact is here, in Australia.' He added that it was 'part of why we are very much urging in this moment for both parties to engage in diplomacy and dialogue'. Anthony Albanese, who is in Canada for the G7 summit, told a press conference that concerns around Australia's fuel reserves had been around 'for quite a while'. The Prime Minister said it was 'something that the government continues to monitor'. Mr Albanese also said he and his Canadian counterpart Mark Carney discussed the Middle East when they met in Calgary ahead of the G7 summit. He said they 'share a view wanting to see a de-escalation of conflict, wanting to prioritise dialogue and diplomacy'. 'I have expressed before our concern about Iran gaining the capacity of nuclear weapons as something that is a threat to security in the region,' Mr Albanese told reporters. 'But we, along with other like-minded country, do want to see that priority on dialogue and diplomacy.
SBS Australia
18 minutes ago
- SBS Australia
Penny Wong urges restraint with Israelis, as MP labels Iran the 'worst regime anywhere'
Israel and Iran started trading missile blows on Friday after the Israeli military launched an attack with the aim of wiping out Iran's nuclear programs. Source: AP / Rami Shlush Australian leaders are calling for a step away from violence between Israel and Iran, following an exchange of missile fire that killed hundreds over the weekend. SBS News understands Foreign Minister Penny Wong had a phone call with her Israeli counterpart, Gideon Sa'ar, in which she urged de-escalation and restraint, as well as a return to dialogue and diplomacy. Israel and Iran started trading missile blows on Friday after the Israeli military launched an attack with the stated aim of wiping out Iran's nuclear and ballistic missile programs. Iran vowed to "open the gates of hell" in retaliation. Speaking to reporters in Canada outside the G7 summit, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said he discussed the conflict with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney. "Both of us, I think, share a view wanting to see a de-escalation of conflict, wanting to prioritise dialogue and diplomacy," Albanese said on Monday morning. "Our concern about Iran gaining the capacity of nuclear weapons is something that is a threat to security in the region. But we, along with other like-minded countries, do want to see that priority on dialogue and diplomacy." Labor frontbencher Amanda Rishworth described the escalation as "alarming". "Israel has a right to defend itself, but we would be urging all parties for dialogue and de-escalation," she told Channel Nine's Today Show on Monday morning. "The consequences will be significant if it spills over into a wider conflict. Of course, the personal consequences are really significant. Obviously, there's a lot of concern for Australians, both in Israel and Iran." She said the advice for Australians in the region is to shelter in place and use Smartraveller for updates from the government. The onslaught continued into Sunday, and Iran's health ministry said 224 people had been killed since Friday. Iranian health ministry spokesperson Hossein Kermanpour said on social media 1,277 other people were hospitalised, and asserted that more than 90 per cent of the casualties were civilians. Liberal MP Andrew Bragg said the Iranian regime is made up of "seriously bad people". "If we were in Israel's shoes, we would not tolerate a country nearby us getting a nuclear weapon," he told the Today Show on Monday morning. "And so I think Israel is trying to stop that from happening — that's a good thing for humanity, because these guys are the worst regime anywhere on the planet. "They should never be given the opportunity to have a nuclear weapon." Western powers accuse Iran of secretly aiming to develop nuclear weapons by enriching uranium to a high level of fissile purity beyond what is deemed necessary for a civilian atomic energy program. While Iran has been open about its stores of enriched uranium, it has consistently denied possessing nuclear weapons and insists its nuclear program is solely intended for civilian energy purposes. The International Atomic Energy Agency estimates Iran's stockpile of 60 per cent enriched uranium could be enough to produce approximately six nuclear bombs if further enriched to the final level. In 2015, Iran reached an agreement with the United States, United Kingdom, France, Germany, Russia, and China, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action. Under the terms of the deal, Iran agreed to limit its nuclear ambitions and allow international inspectors access in exchange for the lifting of economic sanctions. The US later withdrew from the deal in 2018. Iran subsequently violated some of the deal's restrictions, progressively enriching more uranium for nuclear fuel.
West Australian
29 minutes ago
- West Australian
Iran-Israel conflict to dominate G7 talks in Canada
The Israel-Iran conflict is already dominating the meeting of G7 leaders in Canada, with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese discussing the global response to it with his Canadian counterpart Mark Carney. The two prime ministers canvassed the escalating Middle East conflict along with trade, climate change and defence cooperation in their meeting on the eve of the Group of Seven summit. Mr Carney invited Australia, along with a host of other non-G7 leaders from India, Ukraine, Brazil, South Africa, South Korea, Mexico and the UAE, to join the summit in Kananaskis, Alberta. Mr Albanese said Australia and Canada shared a view of 'wanting to see a de-escalation of conflict, wanting to prioritise dialogue and diplomacy' between Israel and Iran. 'I've expressed before our concern about Iran gaining the capacity of nuclear weapons as something that is a threat to security in the region, but we, along with other like-minded countries do want to see that priority on dialogue and diplomacy,' he told reporters in Canada. G7 leaders are planning to issue a joint statement on Iran calling for de-escalation of the crisis, Reuters reported. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said he wanted leaders to call on Iran not to develop or possess nuclear weapons, ensure Israel's right to defend itself and avoid further escalation of the conflict to create room for diplomacy. Mr Albanese wouldn't say what Australia's position on any joint statement in support of Israel would be, pointing out Australia wasn't a G7 country. 'I should imagine that that will be something that is up to G7 countries to discuss,' he said.
