• Iranian media says four Iranian advisers were killed in joint US-Saudi strikes on Iraq.
• Iraq has condemned those strikes, warning they risk dragging the country deeper into the conflict.
• At least 20 members of Iraq’s Popular Mobilization Forces were also killed, while 32 others were wounded in seven of the country’s provinces.

UAE condemns drone attacks on Saudi oil facilities from Iraqi territory

The United Arab Emirates has “strongly condemned” drone attacks launched from Iraqi territory that targeted oil facilities in Saudi Arabia’s Eastern Province.

In a statement published today, the UAE’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the attacks constituted a “blatant violation” of Saudi sovereignty and a threat to its security and stability, without specifying the timing of the incidents or whether they caused casualties or damage.

Saudi Arabia last reported drone strikes on Tuesday, and launched joint strikes with the US on what it called Iran-aligned groups in Iraq. The strikes killed at least 20 members of Iraq’s paramilitary Popular Mobilisation Forces, according to the group.

Unclear who started shooting first as regional attacks shatter calm

Iran’s IRGC says it fired missiles at a US airbase in Jordan in response to “aggressive actions” by the US military.

So the question is whether this was a specific response to the US-Saudi joint strikes on the Iraqi paramilitary group, the Popular Mobilization Forces. CENTCOM’s statement has not clarified which attack happened first.

Recently, the spokesperson of the Iranian army said Iran’s responses are retaliatory and if the US doesn’t attack Iran, it will not attack US bases across the region.

At the moment, it remains unclear who started the strikes, but what is clear is the region is on edge again after days of relative calm in the Middle East.

Iraq says it had ‘no prior knowledge’ of deadly US-Saudi attacks

Iraq’s prime minister will postpone a trip to Saudi Arabia in light of US-Saudi attacks that killed at least 20 members of the country’s Iran-backed Popular Mobilization Forces, a government spokesperson has said.

In comments reported by the Iraqi News Agency, spokesman Haider al-Aboudi said Baghdad “has not granted any approval for attacks on specific sites or groups within Iraqi territory”.

“The government had no prior knowledge of the attacks on Iraqi territory,” he added.

This communication comes after US President Trump said that the strikes were coordinated with the Iraqi government.

Iraq yesterday said it wanted evidence regarding the launch of attacks on Saudi Arabia from Iran-backed groups in its territory, a demand for which al-Aboudi said Baghdad had contacted Riyadh.

Saudi Arabia may dragged itself further into the war in Iran

The war in Iran has taken a significant turn, even as the memorandum of understanding between Washington and Tehran to stop the fighting is supposed to be in progress.

Saudi Arabia, in coordination with the US, carried out strikes inside Iraq against armed groups with ties to Iran, after Riyadh accused the Iraqi groups of attacking its oil facilities.

The strikes have ignited fears of escalation, and now the Popular Mobilization Forces armed group is promising to retaliate. One of its factions has given the Iraqi government a week to respond to the Saudi attacks.

Explosions heard in Erbil

Iraqi media is reporting a series of explosions in Erbil in northern Iraq