European shares slip as US strikes on Iran fuel Middle East escalation fears

June 23 (Reuters) - European shares fell on Monday after the U.S. decision to join Israel in striking Iran's nuclear facilities over the weekend heightened investor fears of an escalation in the Middle East conflict.
The pan-European STOXX 600 index (.STOXX), opens new tab was down 0.3% at 535.11 points, as of 0712 GMT. Other major regional indexes also traded lower.
Iran and Israel exchanged air and missile strikes on Monday, as global tensions rose over Tehran's expected response to a U.S. attack on its nuclear facilities over the weekend.
In a post to the Truth Social platform on Sunday, U.S. President Donald Trump questioned the possibility of regime change in Iran.
Markets fear that an Iranian retaliation may include a closure of the Strait of Hormuz, the world's most important oil artery.
Bucking the sombre mood, the oil and gas sector (.SXEP), opens new tab led gains in the regional index, rising 0.7%, as oil prices jumped on fears of supply disruption following the weekend strike.
Travel and leisure stocks (.SXTP), opens new tab lost 0.8%.
Among stocks, Spectris (SXS.L), opens new tab rose 14.6% after private equity firm Advent said it will acquire the scientific instruments maker in a deal valued at 4.4 billion pounds ($5.91 billion).
($1 = 0.7443 pounds)

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