Conflict Widens, US Asks Citizens to Leave Middle East

• Oil price exceeds $85 a barrel, first time in 21 months 

• Trump:  Strikes killed leaders US saw as successors 

• IMF: Tensions heightening global economic uncertainty 

•Mass funeral held for children killed in strike on school 

•US to cut off all trade with Spain

Emmanuel Addeh in Abuja and Nume Ekeghe in Lagos

The US Department of State yesterday called on Americans to immediately depart more than a dozen countries in the Middle East, including Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, as the US-Israeli versus Iran war entered day four.

This is coming on the heels of Iran’s attack on Dubai US Consulate yesterday night in  targeted  drone strike. Marco Rubio, the US Secretary of State however stated that all personnel had been accounted for and evacuated. Stating that the drone strike was a parking lot adjacent to the building. Plumes of  smoke and fire could be seen rising at the Consulate after the attack.

Iran had also continued to target  US military bases in Doha, Qatar and across the middle east.

The State Department’s Assistant Secretary for Consular Affairs, Mora Namdar, said US citizens should leave using available commercial transportation “due to safety risks.”

The warning came after the department, in recent days, updated its travel advisories for several countries in the region to recommend against travel. The advisory applies to Bahrain, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Israel, the West Bank and Gaza, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, United Arab Emirates and Yemen.

The US Embassy in Amman, Jordan, announced earlier that its personnel had departed the site “due to a threat.” The US State Department has also activated an inter-agency emergency task force to manage the situation and coordinate the United States’ response to the conflict, a US official said.

On Saturday, the United States and Israel carried out a barrage of strikes on various targets in Iran, killing many top officials, including Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Tehran responded with its own strikes, at multiple US and Israel sites across the regions.

US President Donald Trump said  that the conflict had been projected to last four to five weeks but that it could go longer. The conflict, which has launched the region into war, leaving scores of people dead, has resulted in a spike in energy prices as Iranian officials threatened to fire on any ship that tries to pass through the Strait of Hormuz, a key shipping route for the world’s oil supply.

US Treasury Secretary, Scott Bessent, and Energy Secretary, Chris Wright, were expected on Tuesday to announce US steps to mitigate the rising energy prices, according to Washington’s top diplomat, Marco Rubio.

“We anticipated this could be an issue, and Secretary Wright and Bessent will begin to roll out those steps to mitigate against the impact that could have,” Rubio said ahead of a briefing congressional leaders about the strikes.

Oil Price Hits $85 Per Barrel

In the same vein, global crude oil price surged further to $85 a barrel yesterday as the conflict involving the US, Israel, and Iran continues to stoke concerns about supply disruptions.

Nigeria’s benchmark, Brent crude,  went up further up by 8 per cent to $85 per barrel, for the  first time since June 2024, when it hit $85.2. Besides, US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude gained 6 per cent to hit $75.91 per barrel.

Brent had risen to $79 per barrel amid escalating geopolitical tensions in the Middle East. According to a Reuters report, the price increase was triggered by disrupted fuel shipments and growing concerns that the expanding US-Israel-Iran conflict could further threaten oil and gas supplies from the Middle East.

Since the attacks began in the region, oil and gas facilities in several countries have been closed due to damage or as a safety measure. On Monday, QatarEnergy, the state-owned energy company of Qatar, halted the production of liquefied natural gas (LNG) due to Iranian military attacks on its operating facilities.

Also, Saudi Aramco, Saudi Arabia’s oil company, shut down its Ras Tanura oil refinery, following a fire sparked by debris from an Iranian drone attack at the facility.

The conflict has also disrupted the global supply chain as major container shipping lines suspended sailings through the Strait of Hormuz and the Suez Canal over escalating security risks in the Gulf region.

Trump: Strikes Killed Leaders US Saw as Successors in Iran

President Trump yesterday rejected suggestions that Israel forced his hand in attacking Iran, and said that it was unclear who would take over the country because likely candidates were dead.

Trump said that officials the United States had eyed as potential new leaders of Iran had been killed in the US-Israeli bombing campaign. As the war in the Middle East widened, he said that the worst outcome would be that whoever takes over Iran could be “as bad” as their predecessors.

Speaking to reporters at the start of a White House meeting with Chancellor Friedrich Merz of Germany, Trump claimed that Iran was about to attack its neighbours and Israel, and he made the decision to go to war to pre-empt that action. Officials with access to US intelligence have said that Trump has exaggerated the immediacy of any threat Iran posed to the United States.

“We were having negotiations with these lunatics, and it was my opinion that they were going to attack,” he said. Asked if Israel had forced his hand, as has been widely reported, Trump said, “If anything, I might have forced Israel’s hand.”

Global stock markets tumbled on Tuesday and the price of oil surged, as the widening conflict in the Middle East sent a shudder through the world economy and American and Israeli officials signaled that their bombing campaign against Iran could last weeks. At the White House, Trump predicted  oil prices would fall once the fighting stopped. Merz said the high oil prices were damaging the world economy, an argument for ending the war quickly.

Asked who he would like to take over Iran, Trump gave a strikingly blunt answer. “Most of the people we had in mind are dead,” he said. “Now we have another group, they may be dead also, based on reports. So you have a third wave coming. Pretty soon we’re not going to know anybody.”

When asked about a worst-case scenario, he said: “I guess the worst case would be we do this and somebody takes over who’s as bad as the previous person. Right, that could happen? We don’t want that to happen. It would probably be the worst, you go through this and in five years you realise you put somebody in who’s no better.”

More than 800 people have been killed in the conflict across the Middle East since Saturday, when the United States and Israel launched their opening attacks on Iran and killed the country’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

The war has prompted a global market sell-off that intensified on Tuesday, with stocks and bonds slipping and oil and gas prices surging because of attacks on production facilities and tankers, and Iran’s threats to close the Strait of Hormuz.

US Says Not in Position to Evacuate Americans from Israel

The US embassy in Jerusalem said it was not in a position  to evacuate or directly assist American citizens in departing Israel, instead directing them toward Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula.

For those making their own security plans, the embassy said in a post on X, the Israeli tourism ministry has begun operating shuttles to the Taba Border crossing with Egypt as of yesterday and said Americans could register on the passenger list, adding that it could not make any recommendation for or against the shuttle.

“If you choose to avail yourself of this option to depart, the U.S. government cannot guarantee your safety,” it said. “The information is provided as a courtesy to those wishing to leave Israel.”

Earlier, U.S. ambassador Mike Huckabee warned that Americans had “very limited options” to leave Israel.

Mass Funeral Held for Children Killed in Strike on School

Also, funeral has held for children who lost their lives in US-Israeli attack on Iranian Primary School

Thousands of people, including families and officials, gathered in Minab, Iran, yesterday for a funeral ceremony for the children who perished in the strike on Shajareh Tayyebeh elementary school Saturday.

IMF:Tensions Heightening Global Economic Uncertainty

Meanwhile, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has alerted that heightened tensions in the Middle East are adding fresh strains to an already fragile global economic environment, citing early signs of disruptions to trade, rising energy prices and heightened volatility across financial markets.

In a statement, yesterday, the Fund said it was closely monitoring developments in the Middle East, noting that the situation remains fluid and difficult to quantify at this stage.

It stated: “We are closely monitoring developments in the Middle East. So far, we have observed disruptions to trade and economic activity, surges in energy prices, and volatility in financial markets. The situation remains highly fluid and adds to an already uncertain global economic environment.”

The Washington-based institution stressed that it is still too early to fully assess the economic consequences for the region and the broader global economy. The eventual impact, it noted, will depend largely on how far the conflict spreads and how long it persists.

“It is too early to assess the economic impact on the region and the global economy. That impact will depend on the extent and duration of the conflict,” it stressed.

The IMF said it would provide a more detailed evaluation of the implications of the crisis in its upcoming April edition of the World Economic Outlook, where it is expected to outline revised projections for growth, inflation and financial stability risks.

“We will provide a comprehensive assessment in our April World Economic Outlook,” it added.

US to Cut Off All Trade with Spain

President Trump yesterday said the US would cut off all trade with Spain after the European country refused to let the US military use its bases for missions linked to strikes on Iran.

“Spain has been terrible,” Trump told reporters during a meeting with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, adding that he had told Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent to “cut off all dealings” with Spain.

“We’re going to cut off all trade with Spain. We don’t want anything to do with Spain,” he added.

Trump’s comments came after the US relocated 15 aircraft, including refuelling tankers, from the Rota and Moron military bases in southern Spain after the country’s Socialist leadership said it would not allow them to be used to attack Iran.

Spanish Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares said Spain would not allow its military bases to be used because the offensive was not covered by its agreement with the United States, nor in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations.