And just like that, Israel - having once again ignored Biden's pleadings not to escalate the already tense situation - is retaliating against Iran's weekend strike, which was itself a retaliation against Israel bombing Iran's embassy in Syria on April 1.
Moments ago futures dumped, oil prices spiked, and treasury yields slumped amid social media reports and Reuters headlines that there have been three "huge explosions" near the central Iran cities of Natanz (location of an Iranian nuclear power plant) and Isfahan (location of the Iranian Nuclear Technology Center which is suspected of being the center of Iran's nuclear weapons program), as well as simultaneous explosions in Iraq and Syria, where the Israel air force appears to be targeting pro-Iranian militias.
IRANIAN MEDIA CONFIRMS AN ISRAELI ATTACK ON IRANIAN TERRITORY
IRANIAN STATE MEDIA IS REPORTING THAT TONIGHT’S AIRSTRIKE BY THE ISRAEL AIR FORCE MAY HAVE TARGETED THE 8TH TACTICAL AIRBASE OF THE IRANIAN AIR FORCE, WITHIN ISFAHAN INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT, WHICH CONTAINS MULTIPLE SQUADRONS OF F-14 “TOMCAT” FIGHTER AIRCRAFT.
ABC NEWS REPORTS THAT ISRAELI MISSILES HIT A SITE IN IRAN
IRAN STATE MEDIA SAYS 'NO FLY ZONE' ESTABLISHED OVER WESTERN REGION
IRANIAN MEDIA: 3 HUGE EXPLOSIONS WERE HEARD IN ISFAHAN, SOUTH OF TEHRAN
JERUSALEM POST: SIMULTANEOUS EXPLOSIONS REPORTED IN IRAN, SYRIA, AND IRAQ ACCORDING TO INITIAL REPORTS
IRAN'S FARS NEWS AGENCY SAYS EXPLOSIONS HEARD IN CENTRAL ISFAHAN AIRPORT, REASON UNKNOWN
ISRAELI MISSILES HIT IRAN SITE, US OFFICIAL SAYS: ABC
SUMMARY: Three large explosions heard in Isfahan south of Tehran, US officials confirm. The Natanz nuclear facility is located in Isfahan. Unconfirmed simultaneous explosions have also been reported in Syria and Iraq (Baghdad and Babil/Babylon province). Iran has established a no-fly-zone over its western region. Market reaction very strong: oil & gold soaring; TSY yields, crypto, and stocks tumbling.
Some more reports:
Here is Marco Rubio telling us more or less what happened:
A video of the explosions in Iran:
There have also been reports of drone activity over Iraq:
Flights above central Iran are diverting from their designations:
... as the airspace over the region is rapidly clearing:
Unconfirmed reports suggest that the Israeli airstrikes are targeting a building where a high level meeting was being held among groups supported by Iran and the IRGC:
The market reaction has been immediate, with S&P futures dumping...
...testing key CTA liquidation levels...
... oil jumping... Below is the Bloomberg note:
... and gold surging back above $2400...
...and Treasuries are aggressively bid...
And Bitcoin repricing WW3 again...
...as traders brace for the worst, because even if Israel hopes to present a "measured" retaliation, now it's a question of what Iran will do next.
More as we get it, until then, fear not: he is watching everything... closely.
