How oil is at the center of the US-Israel war with Iran
The Take
Al Jazeera
4.7 • 748 Ratings
🗓️ 9 March 2026
⏱️ 21 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
The price of oil has soared over $100 a barrel globally as a result of the US-Israeli war on Iran. Iran has effectively shut down shipping lanes in the Strait of Hormuz, while Israel has attacked critical Iranian oil depots. Despite public pressure and outrage, all parties seem prepared to continue the war. What will it mean for the global economy and the people caught in the crossfire?
Listen to more about the Strait of Hormuz here.
In this episode:
- Zein Basravi (@virtualzein), Al Jazeera Senior Correspondent
Episode credits:
This episode was produced by Chloe K. Li, with Sarí el-Khalili, Catherine Nouhan, Tuleen Barakat, Spencer Cline and our host, Malika Bilal. It was edited by Alexandra Locke.
Our sound designer is Alex Roldan. Our video editors are Hisham Abu Salah and Mohannad al-Melhem. Alexandra Locke is The Take’s executive producer.
Special thanks to Sheila H.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Al Jazeera Podcasts. |
| 0:07.0 | Today, the oil factor. |
| 0:14.0 | Israeli wallplanes have struck three oil storage depots and refining facilities in the Iranian capital. |
| 0:20.0 | The latest strikes come as President Trump threatens to expand the operation. |
| 0:25.1 | Is oil going to be what escalates or stops the U.S. Israel war on Iran? |
| 0:33.7 | I'm Malika Bilal, and this is The Take. Hey everyone. |
| 0:52.3 | If you're on the internet and that's where you're watching this, then chances are you have seen the news about surging oil prices. But do you know how that will affect you? Or have |
| 0:55.1 | you already seen those prices have an impact where you are? As you're watching the rest of this |
| 0:59.4 | episode, leave us a comment, letting us know. And if you're listening to this on a podcast app, |
| 1:04.1 | you can also rate and review us, which helps other people find the show. Thanks. |
| 1:11.7 | I'm Zane Basravi. I'm a senior correspondent for Al Jazeera English, and I've been based |
| 1:16.6 | out of Doha for more than 15 years covering all kinds of things. And I wish I was not covering |
| 1:24.8 | it. It's come to our doorstep now. That's come full circle. It's happening in Doha, too, now. |
| 1:31.3 | Yeah. Well, Zane, welcome back to the take. Thank you for taking time out of your evening in Doha to talk to us. We are speaking on Monday, March 9th, which is day 10 of the U.S. Israel War on Iran and Iran's retaliation. And over the past few nights, |
| 1:46.8 | we have seen some pretty apocalyptic images coming out of Iran. Israel has been attacking Iranian |
| 1:53.7 | oil depots, leading to these huge, toxic, black blooms of smoke and fire in the skies of Tehran. Iranians describe it as looking |
| 2:05.1 | like night turned into day. So it is clear that Iran's oil is a main target. Was oil always going |
| 2:13.6 | to be at the center of this war? I mean, it seems like an obvious thing to say, but yes, absolutely. |
| 2:18.9 | I mean, every time there's some kind of conflict here, I go back to my college paper days. |
| 2:25.5 | And I remember when I was working at Campus Beat, and there was this really amazing lecturer |
| 2:29.8 | in town, a Middle Eastern studies expert. |
| 2:32.4 | I walked up to him, and I put my tape recorder in |
... |
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