Iran hit Israel’s Haifa oil refinery harder than authorities initially admitted. The strike completely destroyed the main gasoline reservoir, disabled the internal power plant supplying steam and electricity, and damaged gas turbines, boilers, and control rooms with shrapnel. The attack eliminated around 60% of Israel’s domestic oil product production, leading to a sharp gasoline shortage that was offset by ramping up imports and maximizing output at the Ashdod refinery.
To speed up repairs, the government allowed work to bypass normal environmental and construction regulations, with full restoration now expected only in 2028. The true scale of the damage surfaced after Haifa’s municipality and environmental groups sued over the regulatory shortcuts, raising the possibility that Israel may be downplaying the impact of other Iranian strikes on critical infrastructure
