Bitcoin and Ethereum took a sharp hit as geopolitical tensions between Israel and Iran escalated overnight.
Bitcoin, Ethereum See Liquidations Amid Iran-Israel Conflict
Within just one hour, Bitcoin dropped nearly 2%. Ethereum was hit harder, going down 4.4% over the same period. The sell-off got serious as panic spread across the broader crypto market.
According to CoinGlass, over 215,000 traders were liquidated in the past 24 hours. Total liquidations surpassed $1.01 billion, with $945 million wiped out from long positions alone. The largest single liquidation was on Binance’s BTCUSDT pair — a staggering $201 million.
The crypto market remains highly sensitive to geopolitical shocks. Its global market cap plummeted to $3.34 trillion , which is down 7.8% in just 24 hours. At the time of writing, Bitcoin is trading at $103,248.61, reflecting a daily drop of 4.78%. Ethereum has been hit even harder, now sitting at $2,483.70 after falling over 10% in the past day.
The market turmoil followed news that the Israeli Air Force launched major strikes on Iranian targets. Israel claims the operation aimed to neutralize Iran’s nuclear threat, as a result of this, multiple explosions were reported in Tehran. Israel’s defense minister confirmed that these were preemptive strikes. He cited Iran’s continued uranium enrichment as an unacceptable threat. The operation comes amid US-led efforts to reach a nuclear deal with Tehran.
Even though the US denied involvement, officials confirmed that Israel acted independently. “Tonight, Israel took unilateral action against Iran,” said U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio. “We are not involved, and our top priority remains protecting American forces in the region.”
Tensions had already been rising. Just a week earlier, U.S. intelligence indicated Israel was preparing for a potential strike on Iran’s nuclear sites — despite ongoing negotiations.
Israel is now bracing for a significant counterattack from Iran, which officials believe could surpass the scale of Iran’s earlier strikes. Israel ‘s military campaign is expected to persist until Israel believes that threat has been fully dismantled.
However, not everyone within Israel’s security establishment is convinced. Some intelligence officials question whether Israel can truly eliminate Iran’s nuclear ambitions through military action alone. The ongoing strikes have focused on three primary targets: Iran’s nuclear infrastructure, its key military assets, and high-ranking figures within the Iranian armed forces.
Now, the situation has escalated further. Iranian sources claim that the country’s Armed Forces Chief of Staff, Mohammad Bagheri, may have been assassinated. Note that the confirmation is still pending.
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