Saudi Arabia and the United States have carried out strikes against Iran-backed militia targets in Iraq, in what BBC News described as a possible escalation of the wider Middle East conflict.
US Central Command said the action targeted Iran-aligned groups which it said had been directed by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps to attack American forces and Saudi energy infrastructure. It said the strikes hit logistics and weapons sites in eastern Iraq in response to more than 30 drone attacks over the previous 72 hours.
Iraq’s Popular Mobilisation Forces, a paramilitary umbrella group dominated by Iran-backed Shia militias, said at least 20 of its fighters had been killed and 32 wounded in strikes on sites in several provinces, including Baghdad, Wasit, Nineveh, Basra, Kirkuk, Karbala and Diyala. An official cited by AFP said attacks in Nineveh and Diyala were the deadliest.
The strikes followed a US claim that Iran had launched missiles at American forces in the Middle East on Tuesday. Centcom said all missiles were intercepted. Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said they had targeted a US air base and a command centre in Jordan, and also claimed naval forces had struck three oil tankers in the Strait of Hormuz after they ignored warnings.
A Saudi defence ministry spokesman, Maj-Gen Turki al-Maliki, said Iran-backed militias had launched drones from Iraqi territory at oil facilities in Saudi Arabia’s Eastern and Riyadh regions on Monday and Tuesday. He said Saudi Arabia had acted under its right to self-defence and did not seek escalation, but would respond to aggression.
The PMF condemned the attacks as a serious escalation and a violation of Iraqi sovereignty. Iraq’s presidency also denounced the bombing of PMF bases, while US President Donald Trump told Fox News the strikes had been co-ordinated with the Iraqi government.
Iran’s foreign ministry condemned the strikes, calling them a breach of international law and warning of dangerous consequences. Oil prices rose on Wednesday amid concern that further escalation could disrupt shipments through the Strait of Hormuz, with Brent crude reported up 5% at $88.50 a barrel.
