US, Saudi Arabia strike Iran-linked facilities in Iraq; PM condemns attack

BAGHDAD, Iraq — U.S. Central Command and the Saudi Ministry of Defense said their forces struck logistical sites and weapons depots belonging to Iran Revolutionary Guard Corps-affiliated groups inside Iraq in coordinated early-morning airstrikes. Saudi Arabia said in recent weeks Iran-backed Iraqi groups had targeted energy facilities in the kingdom with drones, prompting the operation. Officials from the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) said facilities in Baghdad, Wasit, Nineveh, Basra, Kirkuk, Karbala and Diyala were hit, and that at least 20 members of the paramilitary umbrella were killed and 32 wounded. The figures could not be independently verified. Iraq's National Security Council convened an emergency session chaired by Prime Minister and Commander-in-Chief Ali al-Zaydi and condemned the strikes as a violation of national sovereignty. The council announced a comprehensive security plan covering the disarmament of non-state armed groups, tighter border controls and the implementation of an agreement ending the International Coalition mission in September 2026. Political analyst Majashi al-Tamimi said the government still has the tools to consolidate arms under state authority, secure borders and share intelligence directly with neighbors. Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr said Iraq should not be dragged into regional conflict and called for preventing armed groups from turning the country into a battlefield. Groups operating under the Islamic Resistance banner held an online meeting to consider military responses, though no immediate action was announced.