- Amid Israel’s punishing air strikes, Iranians clogged roads and highways on Sunday to leave Tehran, according to reports. That came as fresh attacks targeted Iran’s energy infrastructure, including fuel supplies and a top natural gas field. Reduced electricity supplies could worsen an energy crisis that had already been hitting Iranians for months.
Israel’s sustained air campaign against Iran, including on Tehran, prompted residents of the capital to flee, clogging roads and highways.
There were traffic jams on roads leading out of the city, while others trying to flee were hailing taxis as they held suitcases, according to the New York Times.
One resident of Tehran who gave his name only as Alireza told the Washington Post that they left the capital Sunday for Iran’s northern Gilan province after a building near his home was hit by an air strike.
“We were lucky to leave very early,” he said. “Right after us the roads got really crowded.”
The Post and Times also reported that long lines were forming at gas stations, some of which had to resort to rationing, as Iranians rushed to fill up.
The rush to Tehran’s gas stations came as Israel also struck critical pieces of Iran’s energy infrastructure, including oil refineries and fuel depots.
Meanwhile, a separate attack on the South Pars gas field, considered the world’s largest reservoir of natural gas, is also set to worsen an energy crisis that has slammed Iranians for months.
The Pars field is critical to Iran’s domestic energy production, and more than 90% of Iran’s electricity is generated by gas-powered plants, according to the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) in an assessment on Sunday.
Even before Israel’s bombardment, Iran had been suffering through an energy crisis for months, owing to sanctions, mismanagement, old infrastructure, overconsumption, and earlier Israeli attacks.
That forced Iran to impose regular blackouts to conserve energy, leaving universities, shops, and factories in the dark.
“Disruptions to Iran’s natural gas production will likely worsen the country’s ongoing energy crisis and lead to more widespread electricity blackouts, however,” ISW said on Sunday. “Iranians have previously protested against the regime in response to energy shortages. Demonstrations over the rising gas prices in 2017 and 2018 escalated into broader challenges for the regime’s stability.”