US joins forces with Saudis to strike Tehran-backed militias in Iraq

The US military said it knocked down an Iranian missile barrage and worked with Saudi Arabia forces to strike sites in Iraq that Tehran-backed militias have used to launch attacks in recent days. The strikes on Wednesday killed at least 20 members of a former paramilitary alliance that includes pro-Iran groups.

In what Washington cast as "an attempted surprise attack" by Tehran, Iran had launched multiple ballistic missiles at US forces in the Middle East, shattering a brief pause in fighting. Iran's target was a US base in Jordan, Axios cited a US official as saying.

US Central Command (Centcom) said all Iranian missiles launched on Tuesday were intercepted.

The joint US-Saudi strikes on targets in Iraq killed at least 20 members of Iraq's Popular Mobilisation Forces and wounded others.

In a further sign that the lull in fighting could be over, Iran's Revolutionary Guards claimed on Wednesday to have struck and halted three "violating" oil tankers sailing an "illegal" route in the strait of Hormuz, Iranian state media reported. The price of Brent crude oil rose after news of the flare-up, hovering around $88 a barrel.

The US and Saudi warplanes carried out strikes on Iran-backed militants in Iraq after accusing them of launching drone attacks on Saudi oil facilities in recent days.

The Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen claimed to have forced a Saudi oil tanker to turn around as part of their self-styled blockade.

Iran's surprise attack came as the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, visited Washington.

Netanyahu said he had an "excellent" meeting with Trump at the White House.