US and Saudi forces carried out airstrikes in eastern Iraq on Wednesday in retaliation against Iran-backed militants.
The joint air operation took place as US President Donald Trump met Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Washington. It was the first time the two had met face to face since the Middle East war began at the end of February.
Crude oil prices rose by more than 4% as renewed tensions in the Middle East heightened concerns about global supplies.
The US military said that US and Saudi warplanes had struck logistics and weapons facilities belonging to “terrorists aligned with Iran” in eastern Iraq.
Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Defense said that “terrorist militias loyal to Iran” were linked to attacks against the kingdom’s oil facilities.
A pause in the fighting that had lasted for days ended on Tuesday night. US forces said they had intercepted missiles launched by Iran at American bases in the Gulf.
Claim of “full control” over the Strait of Hormuz
Washington had said that the pause in the fighting was intended to launch a new round of negotiations, including over the Strait of Hormuz.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps claimed on Wednesday that it had attacked and stopped three tankers in the strait and had “full control” of the waterway.
Trump hosted Netanyahu at the White House on Tuesday. The US administration described the approximately 90-minute closed-door meeting as “positive and productive.”
In a video message released after the meeting, Netanyahu said it was “one of the best meetings I have had with the US president” and said they had discussed their “shared goal of ensuring that Iran does not acquire nuclear weapons.”
Trump said only that they had held “a very good meeting.”
Israel did not take part in the latest round of fighting between the US and Iran, which flared earlier this month after the April ceasefire collapsed.
Gaza and Lebanon on the agenda
Trump and Netanyahu were expected to discuss implementation of the US-backed framework agreement signed between Israel and Lebanon last month. Its implementation on the ground has faced difficulties.
They were also expected to discuss Gaza, where diplomatic efforts to rebuild the devastated Palestinian territory have reached a standstill. However, as of Wednesday, it remained unclear whether the leaders had discussed these issues.
Trump posted photographs of himself with Netanyahu in the Oval Office on social media along with the message, “It was a very good meeting!” He added, “Frankly, many important issues were discussed.”
Nearly three years into the war between Israel and Hamas, the humanitarian situation in Gaza remains dire. Israel continues to regularly target people it identifies as militants.
Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations, Danny Danon, said Netanyahu’s visit came “at a critical time for the Middle East” and that Iran continued to “choose terrorism over negotiations” and block the Strait of Hormuz.
Intervention against tankers in Hormuz
Control of the Strait of Hormuz remains one of the obstacles to finding a peaceful solution to the war in the Middle East. Iran insists on managing this vital passage for oil and gas shipments.
Iran’s powerful Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps continues to stop ships attempting to pass through the trade route. In a statement on Wednesday, it said that three oil tankers had been attacked because they “ignored our warnings and continued sailing on an unsafe and illegal route.”
Tehran announced earlier this week that it had held talks with Oman, which borders the strait, on “common principles and operational mechanisms” to ensure the safe passage of maritime traffic.
In June, Muscat and Tehran announced that they would discuss imposing a service fee on the waterway, a move opposed by Washington. However, Oman angered Iran by saying that ships could pass through the Strait of Hormuz via its territorial waters, and Tehran responded by attacking the vessels.
