Brent exceeds $103 amid escalating tension between Washington and Tehran

Earlier on Wednesday, Iranian President Masoud Barzani said that US President Donald Trump called Iranians "terrorists," accusing the United States of killing his country's commander and students in Minab city, and targeting a gym in Lamerd city with a cluster bomb, while describing Israel as the "real terrorist."

This came in a speech at the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York.

Barzani said: "Yesterday (Tuesday), the US President (Donald Trump) said we are terrorists, while they killed our commander, killed Minab students, and targeted the gym in Lamerd with a cluster bomb."

Trump, in his speech at the General Assembly on Tuesday, described Iran as the "number one sponsor of terrorism," and said he would not allow Tehran to possess a nuclear weapon.

On February 28 last year, the United States and Israel waged a war on Iran that left thousands dead, and Tehran retaliated with attacks on Israel and US sites in the region.

Later, the United States launched attacks on sites in Iran, amid the deadlock in negotiations between the two countries, despite signing a memorandum of understanding in mid-June last year.

The stalled negotiations are due to disagreements over navigation in the Strait of Hormuz, which is one of the most important strategic corridors for global energy and commodity supplies.