Graphic video continues to surface showing Tehran’s skyline blanketed in thick smoke after U.S. and Israeli forces struck Iranian oil facilities early Saturday.
Saturday’s attacks focused largely on storage and refining sites in and around Tehran and nearby Alborz province.
According to ground footage, several crucial oil facilities were hit, including four storage depots and a petroleum products transport or production transfer center.
Targeted locations included the Shahran oil depot in northwest Tehran, the Aghdasieh oil warehouse in the city’s northeast, and the Tehran refinery, as reported by CNN.
At least one oil depot in Karaj was also struck.
Fires continue to burn into the morning at the Shahran Oil Depot in Northern Tehran, following overnight strikes by Israel. pic.twitter.com/sji0JkF3kg
— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) March 8, 2026
Israeli officials said the sites supported Iran’s military operations, including fuel supply for armed forces and possibly missile-related infrastructure.
Iranian state media and officials confirmed overnight attacks and described them as carried out by “enemy aircraft” from the U.S. and Israel.
Massive fires produced huge orange flames and thick black smoke that blanketed Tehran by Sunday morning.
Crowd and city footage shows the skyline engulfed in smoke while civilian vehicles were coated with soot from burning oil facilities.
In some cases leaked oil entered local sewer systems, ignited, and set multiple city blocks alight.
Authorities later reported that fires were contained in some areas but heavy smoke lingered.
The Iranian Red Crescent warned about polluted air and hazardous conditions and advised residents to wear masks outdoors.
Officials also reported “black rain” contaminated with oil particles after the strikes.
Economic and strategic impact
State media acknowledged the strikes disrupted supply chains serving the country’s most populous regions.
Major crude production facilities along the Persian Gulf do not appear to have been targeted in Saturday’s strikes.
Insane video appears to show the moment last night that storm drains across the Iranian capital of Tehran exploded and burst into flames, as a result of runoff from the Shahran Oil Depot and other oil infrastructure across Northern Tehran, which were targeted earlier in the… pic.twitter.com/armEJxjGrS
— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) March 8, 2026
Oil production is a core pillar of Iran’s economy and remains the main source of government revenue for public services and state spending.
Annual export revenues have ranged from $30-35 billion under constrained conditions and fund roughly 60 percent of the regime’s security budget.
China takes the vast majority of Iranian oil purchases, accounting for upwards of 90 percent of exports.
Smaller amounts go to destinations like Syria and some shipments are transshipped through intermediaries in the UAE, Malaysia, or Indonesia to conceal origins and evade restrictions.
Why this matters
Striking fuel and transfer centers hits the regime’s logistics and complicates its ability to supply armed operations.
The operation sends a clear message that those enabling hostile activity will face direct consequences.
