US gas prices soar as Iranian attack hits Kuwaiti tanker off Dubai coast
Mar 31, 2026 - 09:01
The Pentagon is set to hold a press briefing later today as speculation mounts on a possible ground operation
Welcome to RT’s live coverage of the US-Israeli war on Iran and the wider chaos across the Middle East and beyond that the unprovoked attack has caused. Overnight, there have been reports of significant strikes both on Tehran and the Jewish state. While in Dubai there are reports of loud explosions and a strike on a Kuwaiti tanker.
The price of oil has dropped by almost 1% on global markets, while Moscow has doubled-down on its refusal to sell oil and gas to unfriendly nations.
The Pentagon is set to hold its sixth press briefing since the start of the conflict a month ago, with Secretary of War Pete Hegseth and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Dan Caine expected to appear before journalists later on Tuesday.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio insisted on Monday that “a coalition of nations” would secure the Strait of Hormuz by force while Iran’s ambassador to Russia Kazem Jalali spoke to RT’s Sanchez Effect and dismissed US President Donald Trump’s claims that Tehran is negotiating with Washington, saying that US and Israeli officials are “planning how to strike Iran” rather than seeking peace.
Trump has also claimed that his goal of regime change in Iran was achieved by killing the country’s supreme leader, Ali Khamenei, in the initial strikes on February 28.
“The one regime was decimated, destroyed, they’re all dead. The next regime is mostly dead, and the third regime – we’re dealing with different people than anybody’s dealt with before... it truly is regime change… you can’t do much better than that,” Trump said.
The new leadership in Iran is “very reasonable,” he said, claiming that he feels that a deal with Tehran could be reached “soon.”
The average US gasoline price rose to $4 per gallon on Tuesday, the highest level since 2022. Pump prices are now above levels seen at any point during President Donald Trump’s two terms. Oil prices edged higher, while Asian markets traded lower.
A fully loaded Kuwaiti tanker in waters off Dubai was struck in an Iranian drone attack. Explosions were heard across Tehran after Israel’s military said it carried out multiple waves of strikes on targets in the Iranian capital. In central Israel, cars caught fire after being hit by falling missile fragments.
Iran’s Tabriz Petrochemical Company has been struck in a US-Israeli attack, according to media reports.
Trump remains “generally open to the idea” of launching a special operations raid on Iranian nuclear sites to seize some 450 kg of enriched uranium believed to be stored there, according to the Wall Street Journal’s sources. The US president also told the Financial Times that he was not ruling out the possibility of seizing Iran’s key export hub, Kharg Island, in order to take control of Tehran’s oil exports.
The IDF and Iranian forces have continued to exchange strikes, with videos capturing a major blaze erupting at an oil refinery in Israeli city of Haifa after one of the attacks.
Follow our live coverage below for continuous updates. You can also read our previous updates here.
