JERUSALEM (VINnews) — The Israel Defense Forces have struck Iran’s largest petrochemical facility in Asaluyeh, responsible for about 50% of the country’s petrochemical production, Defense Minister Israel Katz said Sunday, following a previous attack on the second major site.

The two facilities, which together account for about 85% of Iran’s petrochemical exports, “have been taken out of use and are not functioning,” Katz said in a statement.

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“This is a severe economic blow amounting to tens of billions of dollars to the Iranian regime,” he added.

Katz described the petrochemical industry as “a central engine in financing the activities” of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and its military buildup. He said the IDF has been instructed to continue striking with full force the national infrastructure of what he called “the Iranian terror regime.”

“The Iranian terror regime will discover that continued aggression against Israel and the cowardly and criminal firing at Israeli civilians will lead to a deepening of the economic and strategic damage it pays and to the collapse of its capabilities,” Katz said.

The comments come amid ongoing exchanges between Israel and Iran, with Israeli strikes targeting key infrastructure as Iran continues missile attacks on Israeli civilian areas. Katz has previously warned that Iran would “pay painful prices” as long as the attacks persist.f564d7

No immediate confirmation or casualty figures were available from Iranian officials.