Iran-backed Militias in Iraq and Yemen Coordinate Attacks on Saudi Oil Facilities, Raising Tensions

CAIRO: In July, Saudi Arabia and the United States bombed Iran-backed militias in Iraq after blaming them for drone attacks on Saudi oil facilities that had been claimed by Yemen's Houthi rebels, another Iranian ally. Now, regional officials tell The Associated Press that the Houthis helped the Iraqi militias plan and execute the two-day swarm attack, showing a new level of coordination. Iran spent decades building up armed groups on Israel's frontiers that suffered major losses in the wars following , attack out of Gaza. Israel battered the Palestinian militants as well as Lebanon's Hezbollah, which had been Iran's most powerful ally. Regional officials and experts say Iran is now using the Iraqi militias and the Houthis to threaten Saudi Arabia and other American allies in the Gulf in order to drive up the costs of the in February. It is a risky strategy. A wave of Houthi attacks on Saudi oil facilities on Tuesday threatened to reignite full-scale war with the kingdom. Iraq has ordered militias to disarm by the end of this month, though powerful Iran-backed groups have refused to do so. A new American effort to economically isolate Iran could spark further escalation.