DUBAI — Iran's Revolutionary Guard confirmed missile and drone attacks on petroleum facilities across Saudi Arabia and Qatar early Thursday, targeting critical energy infrastructure in apparent retaliation for Israeli strikes on Iran's South Pars gasfield complex.

The unprecedented assault on Gulf energy sites represents the most serious escalation in regional conflict since tensions erupted over Iranian nuclear facilities last month. Saudi officials reported strikes on at least three major refineries near Dhahran, while Qatar's energy ministry confirmed attacks on LNG processing facilities at Ras Laffan.

"The trust between regional partners has been fundamentally broken," Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman told reporters in Riyadh. "These deliberate attacks on civilian energy infrastructure cross every red line we have established." Qatar's Foreign Ministry described the strikes as "acts of economic terrorism" that threaten global energy security.

The Iranian attacks followed Israeli military operations against Iran's South Pars natural gas complex and naval installations near Bandar Abbas. Tehran's defense ministry reported significant damage to port facilities and at least twelve military vessels destroyed or severely damaged. Dr. Saeed Laylaz, a Tehran-based energy analyst, warned that "both sides have now crossed into direct attacks on economic lifelines, fundamentally changing the nature of this conflict."