Iran threatens to turn Israel into ‘scorched land’ if energy sites attacked

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has threatened devastating retaliation against Israel if Iranian energy infrastructure is attacked, warning that the occupied territories would be turned into “scorched land” and their inhabitants displaced to Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula.

“Any aggression against Iran's energy infrastructure, although it will be immediately repaired by young scientists, will turn the occupied territories into a scorched land forever and will displace its usurpers to Sinai Peninsula. The world will see what will happen!” the IRGC spokesperson Brigadier General Hossein Mohebbi was quoted as saying in a post shared by IRNA English on X.

The threat to displace Israelis to Sinai is rhetoric reported late on Sunday, October 18, amid escalating tensions in the US-Israeli war against Iran, which began with strikes on February 28, 2026.

The statement did not identify a specific Israeli target or provide a timeline for any retaliatory action.

It was a warning against a potential attack on Iran’s energy infrastructure, not confirmation that such an attack had occurred.

Energy infrastructure increasingly at risk

The threat comes as energy facilities and transport networks have become increasingly exposed to attacks during the conflict.

A Reuters investigation published on October 15 found that Iran and its allied groups had carried out at least 135 drone and missile attacks on 84 critical infrastructure sites across Gulf countries since the war began.

Targets included oil facilities in the Gulf countries, including Qatar’s Ras Laffan liquefied natural gas complex and Saudi pipeline infrastructure.

The conflict has also disrupted global energy markets and complicated oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz, a strategic waterway through which a substantial share of the world’s oil supply normally passes.

An Associated Press report on October 13 described growing threats to commercial shipping around the strait, including attacks on vessels and Iranian efforts to restrict maritime movements.

Mohebbi's warning was published by other outlets, including Press TV, Iran’s state broadcaster.

Sinai is part of Egypt.