Iran's military command said on Wednesday (March 11) the world should be prepared for oil to hit $200 a barrel, as three more ships came under attack in the blockaded Gulf.

Iran fired at Israel and targets across the Middle East on Wednesday, demonstrating it can still fight back and disrupt energy supplies despite what the Pentagon has described as the most intense U.S.-Israeli strikes yet.

Oil prices that shot up earlier this week have eased and stock markets have rebounded, with investors betting for now that U.S. President Donald Trump will find a quick way to end the war he began alongside Israel nearly two weeks ago.

But so far there has been no let-up on the ground, or any sign that ships can safely sail through the Strait of Hormuz, where a fifth of the world's oil has been blockaded behind a narrow channel along the Iranian coast in the worst disruption to energy supplies since the oil shocks of the 1970s.

"Get ready for oil to be $200 a barrel, because the oil price depends on regional security which you have destabilized," Ebrahim Zolfaqari, spokesperson for Iran's military command, said in comments addressed to the United States.

DESCRIPCIÓN DE IMÁGENES

UNKNOWN LOCATION (MARCH 11, 2026) (POOL VIA WANA - No use VOA Persian. No use BBC Persian. No use Manoto. No use Iran International. No Use Radio Farda)

1. (SOUNDBITE) (Farsi) SPOKESMAN FOR THE KHATAM AL-ANBIYA CENTRAL HEADQUARTERS, EBRAHIM ZOLFAQARI, SAYING:

“We have repeatedly warned Trump, the master of Zionist child-killers and the Mossad organisation, that you may start the war, but we will determine how it ends. The Armed Forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran, because they hold the initiative in the Strait of Hormuz, have no need to close the strait. Any closure of the Strait of Hormuz would be the result of the conditions that the United States and the Zionists have imposed on the countries of the world.”

2. WHITE FLASH

3. (SOUNDBITE) (Farsi) SPOKESMAN FOR THE KHATAM AL-ANBIYA CENTRAL HEADQUARTERS, EBRAHIM ZOLFAQARI, SAYING:

“We will never allow even a single liter of oil to pass through the Strait of Hormuz for the benefit of the United States, the Zionist regime, or their partners. Any vessel whose cargo or oil shipment is destined for the United States, the Zionist regime, or their hostile partners will be considered a legitimate target.”

4. WHITE FLASH

5. (SOUNDBITE) (Farsi) SPOKESMAN FOR THE KHATAM AL-ANBIYA CENTRAL HEADQUARTERS, EBRAHIM ZOLFAQARI, SAYING:

“Your strategy of hiding behind Iran’s neighboring countries in the Islamic and Muslim region of West Asia—and indeed the wider world—has expired. The tactic of your cowardly army hiding in civilian areas and the infrastructure of regional countries will not save your forces from the quagmire you have fallen into. Your vital centers and bases will burn one after another in the fire that you yourselves ignited—and this will happen again and again.”

6. WHITE FLASH

7. (SOUNDBITE) (Farsi) SPOKESMAN FOR THE KHATAM AL-ANBIYA CENTRAL HEADQUARTERS, EBRAHIM ZOLFAQARI, SAYING:

“The policy tit-for-that retaliation from our side is over. From now on, we pursue a policy of strike after strike, until your complete punishment and regret. For once, be honest. Do not try to pose as heroes. Admit your defeat—throughout the history of the United States and since the very inception of the ill-fated Zionist regime and acknowledge your wrongdoing and openly confess your mistake. You have repeatedly pointed to the presence of your naval forces in the region’s waters. Yet even the one time you moved slightly forward, you retreated in the face of Iran’s missile power. From the very first day of your aggression, we have been waiting for them—so that we may prove to you that your cowardly army is far smaller than you imagine.”

8. WHITE FLASH

9. (SOUNDBITE) (Farsi) SPOKESMAN FOR THE KHATAM AL-ANBIYA CENTRAL HEADQUARTERS, EBRAHIM ZOLFAQARI, SAYING:

“You will not be able to keep oil and energy prices artificially low through economic 'life support.” As we have already warned, if the war spreads across the region, expect oil to reach $200 per barrel. Oil prices follow the level of security in the region—and the source of that insecurity is you.”

10. WHITE FLASH

11. (SOUNDBITE) (Farsi) SPOKESMAN FOR THE KHATAM AL-ANBIYA CENTRAL HEADQUARTERS, EBRAHIM ZOLFAQARI, SAYING:

“Our hands are full of stronger and more powerful blows. As we continue the previous enemy-crushing operations, we will avenge the pure blood of our martyred leader, our beloved nation, the innocent women and children, and the innocent angels of Minab who were killed.”