The World Bank Group has finally broken its silence on the Middle East conflict between the United States (US) and Israel on the Islamic Republic of Iran.
The conflict, which is almost in its fourth week, has claimed more lives, destroyed several properties and caused turmoil in the global economy.
The World Bank Group and its statement issued on Thursday 26, March 2026, noted: “ A number of the World Bank Group’s clients in emerging markets have reached out to us as the conflict in the Middle East has started to impact commodity prices and logistics”.
We are working with governments, the private sector, regional partners, and other stakeholders to help them through this new set of challenges, it added.
“We are closely monitoring global market developments, and we are in direct contact with the most affected client countries to understand what they are facing on the ground.
Shipping route disruptions are increasing costs, and supply risks are spreading from energy into fertilisers and other critical agricultural inputs.
Crude oil prices increased by nearly 40 per cent between February and March, the price of liquefied natural gas shipments to Asia rose by almost two-thirds, and the prices of nitrogen-based fertilisers increased by nearly 50 per cent in March.
The World Bank Group is moving quickly to help client countries to navigate this crisis. We are ready to respond at scale — combining immediate financial relief with policy expertise and private sector support for the recovery of jobs and growth, the statement added.
The Group assured that it would draw on the full range of instruments we have available to support governments, firms, and households.
Our aim is to deliver immediate relief by leveraging our active portfolio, our crisis response toolkit, and pre-arranged financing facilities, according to the statement.
“We will transition progressively to fast-disbursing instruments anchored in sound policies to underpin recovery. Through our private sector arms, we will provide firms with essential liquidity, trade finance, and working capital”.
Clearly, this is an evolving situation and the Group cannot predict the full range of impacts. As everyone has said, the longer this lasts, and the more damage there is to critical infrastructure, the more challenging this will be for our clients.
That said, we are determined to be helpful and do all we can to safeguard some of the hard-won economic progress that these countries are making, the statement said.
Background
On February 28, 2026, after the breakdown of US–Iran negotiations, Israel and the United States conducted coordinated military operations against Iranian targets.
Iran retaliated with missile and drone strikes on Israeli territory, causing civilian casualties and infrastructure damage.
The US and Israel’s attack came after weeks of military buildup and threats from US President Donald Trump.
Large-scale strikes targeted Iranian military assets and the Islamic Republic’s top leadership, killing Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Tehran’s Assembly of Experts subsequently appointed Ali Khamenei’s son, Mojtaba Khamenei, to succeed him.
Iran has retaliated by targeting U.S. military facilities in the region, Israel, and energy and civilian infrastructure in the Gulf states.
Israel has also stepped up its air strikes in Lebanon after Hezbollah fired rockets into Israel in support of Iran.
Iran’s ambassador to the United Nations stated that more than 1,500 civilians have been killed so far, including at least 175 people who were killed by a reported U.S. strike on an Iranian elementary school, and up to 3.2 million have been displaced.
Thirteen U.S. service members have been killed. Trump has issued conflicting statements on U.S. military objectives and the trajectory of the conflict.
The attack quickly escalated into a regional war with widespread ramifications for critical supply chains and humanitarian aid.
Iran’s effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz has caused a global energy shock, prompting the International Energy Agency to release four hundred million barrels from its strategic reserve.
