International oil prices surged on Thursday amid continued turmoil in the Middle East.
West Texas Intermediate crude futures for April delivery gained 8.48 U.S. dollars, or 9.72 percent, to settle at 95.73 U.S. dollars a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The rally was fueled by comments from Iran's new Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei, who stated that the closure of the strategically vital Strait of Hormuz would continue "as a tool to pressure the enemy."
To help mitigate rising energy costs, U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright announced Wednesday that the United States will release 172 million barrels of oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve. The release is expected to take approximately 120 days to complete.
Brent crude for May delivery went up 8.48 dollars, or 9.22 percent, to settle at 100.46 U.S. dollars a barrel on the London ICE Futures Exchange.
Crude futures settle higher
Crude futures settle higher
Pakistani warplanes struck several locations across Afghanistan on Thursday night and Friday, killing at least six people, including a woman and a child, and wounding more than a dozen others, local officials said.
The strikes hit a fuel depot near the country's Kandahar Airport, areas in the capital Kabul, and the eastern Nangarhar Province.
A Pakistani security source said the strikes targeted hideouts belonging to the Pakistani Taliban, also known as Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).
In Kabul's 21st police district, one of the areas hit, a market was left in ruins. Several cars were destroyed, and windows of buildings in the market and nearby areas were shattered. A crater caused by the Pakistani airstrikes was also visible.
"This is my car. I had parked it here, and it was the only way I could bring food to my family's table. It was my sole source of income and my only means of employment. Now my car is in this condition, and I have no other way to provide for my family," said Mohamad Ghulam, a taxi driver.
The airstrikes destroyed a house, killing four members of a single family. More than a dozen other households in the area reported their homes either fully or partially destroyed.
One of the victims was 22-year-old Hedayatullah, who had just been married. He was killed alongside his pregnant wife, as well as his brother and sister.
"Hedayatullah got married nine months ago. His brother was 18 years old. He himself was 22 years old, he also had a 12-year-old sister, and his wife was about 19 years old and was pregnant," said Ghulam Sakhi, a relative of the victims.
"This neighbor of ours was a family of five. Their mother was not present at the moment of the bombardment, but the rest of them lost their lives. It was Hedayatuallah's family. From my own family, two of my daughters, my sister-in-law, my brother, and two nieces got injured," said Mohamad Homayoun, a survivor.
In the past weeks, scores of people from both sides have been killed or injured in the conflict between Afghanistan and neighboring Pakistan, according to officials from the two countries.
The United Nations mission in Afghanistan has called for an immediate halt to cross-border clashes, warning that the escalating violence is driving a surge in civilian casualties and deepening a humanitarian crisis.
At least 6 killed, more than a dozen wounded in Pakistani airstrikes on Afghanistan: officials
