Global oil prices jumped after Israel said it had struck Iran, in a dramatic escalation of tensions in the Middle East.

Benchmark oil contracts Brent Crude and Nymex light sweet were up by more than 10% after the news emerged.

Traders are concerned that a conflict between Iran and Israel could disrupt supplies coming from the energy-rich region.

The cost of crude oil affects everything from the price of food at the supermarket to how much it costs to fill up your car.

Analysts have told the BBC that energy traders will now be watching to see whether Iran retaliates in the coming days.

“It’s an explosive situation, albeit one that could be defused quickly as we saw in April and October last year, when Israel and Iran struck each other directly,” Vandana Hari of Vandana Insights told the BBC.

“It could also spiral out into a bigger war that disrupts Mideast oil supply,” she added.

In an extreme scenario, Iran could disrupt supplies of millions of barrels of oil a day if it targets infrastructure or shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.

The strait is one of the world’s most important shipping routes, with about a fifth of the world’s oil passing through it.

At any one time, there are several dozen tankers on their way to the Strait of Hormuz, or leaving it, as major oil and gas producers in the Middle East and their customers transport energy from the region.

Bounded to the north by Iran and to the south by Oman and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), the Strait of Hormuz connects the Gulf with the Arabian Sea.

“What we see now is very initial risk-on reaction. But over the next day or two, the market will need to factor in where this could escalate to,” Saul Kavonic, head of energy research at MST Financial said.

(BBC News)

A London-bound Air India flight carrying 242 people, has crashed shortly after take-off in Ahmedabad, western India.
Flight AI171 was travelling from Ahmedabad to London Gatwick.

According to foreign media, the plane crashed into a doctors’ hostel.

According to Air India, there were 169 Indian nationals on the flight, as well as 53 Britons, one Canadian national and seven Portuguese nationals,

Tracking website Flightradar24 says it received the last signal from the aircraft at 625 feet (190m) “just seconds after take off”.

On a X post, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said, “The tragedy in Ahmedabad has stunned and saddened us. It is heartbreaking beyond words.

“In this sad hour, my thoughts are with everyone affected by it…Have been in touch with ministers and authorities who are working to assist those affected,” he has added.

(BBC News)

LA Mayor Karen Bass has announced a partial curfew for Los Angeles to tackle the protests against immigration raids.
And in a televised address, California Governor Gavin Newsom attacks Donald Trump for inflaming LA situation.

The US president said the protests were an “assault on peace and public order” and he doubled down on deploying more troops to the city.

California officials say they weren’t notified – Bass says the way to dismantle protests is to end the raids, while Newsom is suing over the federal government’s response.

A defence official tells CBS that around 2,100 members of the California National Guard are now in the Los Angeles area, along with 700 Marines.

(BBC News)