Trump Denies Knowledge of Israel’s South Pars Strike as Oil Prices Surge

The President of the United States, Donald Trump, has said the U.S had no prior knowledge of Israel’s strike on Iran’s South Pars gas field, while also distancing Qatar from the incident.

Trump disclosed this on March 19, 2026, in a post on Truth Social, the social media platform he owns.

Recall, Economic Confidential had earlier reported that global oil prices surged on Wednesday after Israel carried out strikes on Iran’s South Pars gas field, the world’s largest natural gas reserve, marking a significant escalation in the ongoing conflict.

Following the development, Brent crude rose by more than five per cent to trade near $110 per barrel, as markets reacted to concerns over potential disruptions to energy supplies across the Middle East.

In his statement, Trump maintained that the United States was not informed ahead of the attack and stressed that Qatar had no involvement or prior knowledge of the strike, despite indications that Iran believed otherwise and reportedly retaliated against a Qatari gas facility.

He attributed Israel’s action to rising tensions in the region, stating:

“Israel, out of anger for what has taken place in the Middle East, has violently lashed out at a major facility known as South Pars Gas Field in Iran.

“The United States knew nothing about this particular attack, and the country of Qatar was in no way, shape, or form, involved with it, nor did it have any idea that it was going to happen.”

Trump also indicated that Israel would refrain from further attacks on the facility, while warning against any retaliation targeting Qatar’s liquefied natural gas infrastructure.