Middle East latest: Tankers burn near Iraq as Iran warns world to prepare for $200 a barrel oil

The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) says more than 1,100 children had been killed or injured in just under two weeks of conflict

Smoke rises after an explosion at the airport in Irbil, Iraq, late on Wednesday, March. Picture: AP Photo/Leo Correa.

Two tankers were ablaze in Iraqi waters on Thursday after what appeared to be Iranian strikes, the latest wave of attacks on oil and transport facilities across the Middle East, as ​Iran warned the world should be ready for oil to hit $200 a barrel.

Unleashed with joint US and Israeli air strikes on Iran almost two weeks ago, the war has so far killed around ‌2,000 people and thrown global energy markets and transport into chaos. The conflict has spread across the Middle East and prompted plans for a record release of strategic oil reserves to dampen one of the worst fuel shocks since the 1970s.