US, Saudi forces strike Iran-backed groups in Iraq

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, prompting Iran to warn that blaming it for such attacks was a "major miscalculation".

The strikes on targets inside Iraq come as Oman proposed a new regional deal aimed at resolving the conflict over the critical Strait of Hormuz, through which about a fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas flowed before the war.

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.

Reuters could not immediately verify the Guards' account.

The US-Saudi strikes in eastern Iraq occurred just hours after the US military said its air defences 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 US bombing campaign and Iran appeared to follow suit.

US-Saudi hit pro-Iran targets in Iraq

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 Defence Ministry spokesperson Turki al-Maliki said.

Later in the day, US Central Command and Saudi Arabia's defence 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 Defence Ministry said it was not seeking escalation but would respond to any "aggression".

Iraq's Popular Mobilisation Forces said a number of its official headquarters in different parts of Iraq were attacked on Wednesday by what it described as US and Saudi forces. The PMF said preliminary reports indicated several people were killed and others wounded, with damage to a number of its buildings and facilities.

Oil prices rose over $3 a barrel on Wednesday after US and Saudi Arabia strikes over concerns the conflict may escalate.

Speaking to state TV in Iran, an Iranian defence 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".

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."