DUBAI — The US and Saudi Arabia launched strikes on Iran-backed groups in Iraq on Wednesday, saying they were responsible for drone attacks on Saudi oil facilities.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) said on Wednesday that its forces struck three oil tankers in the strait and forced them to stop after they ignored warnings for taking an “unsafe and illegal route”.
The IRGC Navy said in a statement that it continued to maintain full control over the strategic waterway and warned that “unlawful US military interference” and instructions to vessels in the region would not go unanswered.
The US-Saudi strikes in eastern Iraq occurred just hours after the US military said its air defenses had averted a surprise Iranian attack on US troops in the region. The IRGC said on Wednesday it had fired several ballistic missiles at US military installations in Jordan.
Back-and-forth attacks in recent days have ended a brief pause in the fighting, after US President Donald Trump abruptly called off a two-week bombing campaign and Iran appeared to follow suit.
Saudi Arabia said on Tuesday that its air defences destroyed several drones targeting oil facilities in the Kingdom’s Eastern Province.
Iran-backed militias launched the attacks from Iraqi territory, Saudi Defense Ministry spokesperson Turki al-Maliki said.
Later in the day, US Central Command and Saudi Arabia’s defense ministry said the two countries hit multiple sites across eastern Iraq that they said had been used by Iran to direct drone attacks. The Saudi Defense Ministry said it was not seeking escalation but would respond to any “aggression”.
The Iraqi Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) said eight of its members were killed and four others wounded while a number of its buildings and facilities were damaged in joint Saudi-US strikes on its offices across Iraq on Wednesday.
In a statement, the PMF said the attacks represent a “highly dangerous escalation” and a violation of Iraq’s sovereignty and official security institutions.
Speaking to state TV in Iran, an Iranian defense official strongly denied any connection between projectiles fired from other countries toward Saudi targets.
The unnamed military official, quoted by state broadcaster IRIB, said attributing attacks on US interests in the region to Iran was a “major miscalculation”.
The Islamic Resistance in Iraq, an umbrella group of Iran-backed armed groups, also denied any role in the attacks.
US Central Command also said on Tuesday that Iran had launched multiple ballistic missiles “in an attempted surprise attack on US forces based in the Middle East,” and that the missiles were successfully intercepted.
In a statement, the Revolutionary Guards said: “As long as threats against the Islamic Republic of Iran continue and illegal and malicious actions by US forces against our interests are under way, the resistance will also continue.”
Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi is expected to travel to Saudi Arabia on Thursday, days after he ordered Iraqi security agencies to investigate the drone attacks on Saudi Arabia.
“Iraq is committed to preventing Iraqi territory from being used as a route or launching point for any attack targeting brotherly or friendly countries,” the Iraqi military said in a statement.
The reignited hostilities come a day after US President Donald Trump spoke of “very friendly negotiations” with Iran. At that point, the two sides had not exchanged strikes for a third consecutive day.
The pause in fighting had followed 13 straight nights of bombing by the US, which said it had destroyed tunnels and bridges in southern Iran. Scores of people were reported to have died in the strikes.
Access and control of the Strait of Hormuz remains a key sticking point in talks, which Tehran has denied are even happening.
Oil prices rose early on Wednesday over concerns that an escalation in the conflict could further disrupt energy shipments through the strait.
In morning trading in Asia, the global benchmark Brent crude was up by 4.3% $87.70 (£65.98) a barrel, while US-traded oil was 4.2% higher at $82.62.
The latest strikes coincided with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s visit to Washington, where he met Trump at the White House and attended the funeral of US Senator Lindsey Graham, a prominent Iran hawk.
At least 624 US military service members have been wounded since Trump ordered strikes against Iran in February, according to recent Pentagon data.
The Pentagon said 417 of those personnel were injured in relation to Operation Epic Fury, the jointUS-Israeli military operation against Iran.
Source: Saudi Gazette