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Every day they circulate around the planet more than 100 million of barrels of oil and enormous volumes of gas that depend on a few strategic points to reach their destination. It only takes one of those nodes to fail for the markets to react in chain in a matter of hours and the impact is noticeable from large industries to the final price of energy in homes. The red line that no longer exists. Because he latest attack on Iran He has not been just another member of the war: he has crossed a border that until now everyone avoided, that of directly striking energy productionnot just its transportation or its peripheral facilities. The sequence is clear and extremely dangerous, because first the gas fields are attacked, then immediate retaliation comes. against equivalent infrastructures in neighboring countries, and in a matter of hours the conflict can enter a logic of “eye for an eye” that has no turning back. In fact, what for years was the worst possible scenario for analysts and strategists (an open war against the energy heart of the Gulf) is no longer a hypothesis for become realityand that changes the very nature of the conflict. War against the system, not against objectives. attack the South Pars gas field It’s not just hitting one more facility, it’s hitting a central piece of the global energy system and Iran’s own internal workings, and the Iranian response. on Ras Laffan confirms that the message has been understood throughout the region. It is no longer about destroying military capabilities or putting political pressure, but rather directly damage the pillars that support states: we are talking about income, social stability and supply capacity. When a facility that concentrates near a fifth of natural gas liquefied planet can be engulfed in flames, the war stops being regional and becomes become systemicbecause its effects spread far beyond the battlefield. A war with the face of Iraq. Plus: the dynamic that has been activated is dangerously reminiscent of the gulf war 1991, when burning oil fields became a symbol of total war against energy infrastructure. If the current escalation continues, it is not difficult to imagine the next step: refineries, petrochemical plants and entire fields become priority targets, with prolonged fires and damage that can take years to repair. The difference is that now global interdependence is much olderwhich amplifies the impact and can turn each attack into a direct hit to the global economy. In other words, the war is no longer fought only with missiles and drones, but with the destruction of the capacity to produce and sustain the energy that moves the planet. An expanding goal board. The Iranian response It also hints at a deeper strategic change: one where, if its energy base is hit, any equivalent infrastructure in the region becomes legitimate objectiveincluding facilities in Saudi Arabia, the Emirates or Qatar itself in the equation. If you like, beyond the energy, the implicit message is even more disturbing: if this taboo is broken, other, perhaps more dangerous ones can also be broken. Because Iran still has the capacity to climb in other directionsfrom attacks on political and symbolic centers to more direct blows against power structures. In other words, if they touch the economic heart, they can begin to point to the political heart, and that opens up a range of scenarios that are much more difficult to contain. The war after the combat. From that perspective, the real problem is not only what is happening now, but what this implies for medium and long term. Destroying energy infrastructure is not something that can be repaired in weeks, and each impact can leave scars that most likely they will last for yearsaltering trade flows, regional relations and power balances. Therefore, possibly this moment be so decisive in the war conflict: because it confirms that we have entered in a phase of the same whose consequences will persist long after the bombings stop. It’s not just another war in the Middle East, it never really has been, but now it’s the beginning of a dynamic that can redefine how conflicts are fought in a region where, from now on, the limits are no longer clear. And that is what makes it more dangerous than any other. Image | nara In Xataka | If the question is where Russia is in the Iran war, satellite images leave no doubt: helping to bring down the US In Xataka | A trick is unblocking the passage of ships in Hormuz without the need for drones or escorts, and the US is not going to be amused