Saudi Arabia has joined the US in carrying out strikes against an Iran-backed militia in Iraq, in a potential escalation of the Middle East conflict.

US Central Command (Centcom) said the strikes were against “Iran-aligned terrorists that the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) directed to attack US forces and Saudi energy infrastructure”.

The statement did not name the militia. However, the Popular Mobilisation Forces (PMF) said at least 10 of its members had been killed.

It comes after Iran launched “multiple” ballistic missiles in an “attempted surprise attack” on American forces in the Middle East, according to Centcom. The exchange ends a brief break in US-Iran hostilities.

The US said the attack occurred at 17:45 EDT (21:45 GMT) on Tuesday, with all missiles “successfully intercepted”. Iran said it had targeted a US base in Jordan.

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) also said it had hit three oil tankers in the Strait of Hormuz, according to the Tasnim News Agency.

Centcom said US and Saudi fighter jets had struck “multiple terrorist logistics and weapons sites across eastern Iraq in a strong response to over 30 IRGC-directed aerial drone attacks in the last 72 hours”.

It called the attacks “unwarranted” and added that they had failed.

“The IRGC and its terrorist proxies must cease these attacks to avoid further U.S. military response,” the Centcom statement said.

The PMF said the US-Saudi attacks were “a dangerous escalation” as well as a violation of Iraq’s sovereignty.

The PMF is an umbrella organisation that contains several pro-Iranian militias that are part of the network of proxies Tehran has used to advance its interests across the Middle East for years.

Those militias have attacked US personnel and interests in Iraq on a number of occasions, aiming to force the remaining US troops to leave the country. The US has regularly struck back at the militias.

On Tuesday, Saudi Arabia said its military had intercepted and destroyed drones targeting petroleum facilities in the country’s eastern region.

Defence ministry spokesman Maj Gen Turki al-Maliki alleged the drones were launched by Iran-affiliated militia groups in Iraqi territory.

The reignited hostilities come two days after US President Donald Trump spoke of “very friendly negotiations” with Iran. At that point, the two sides had not exchanged strikes for a third consecutive day.

The pause in fighting had followed 13 straight nights of bombing by the US, which said it had destroyed tunnels and bridges in southern Iran. Scores of people were reported to have died in the strikes.

Access and control of the Strait of Hormuz remains a key sticking point in talks, which Tehran has denied are even happening.

Oil prices rose early on Wednesday over concerns that an escalation in the conflict could further disrupt energy shipments through the strait.

In morning trading in Asia, the global benchmark Brent crude was up by 4.3% $87.70 (£65.98) a barrel, while US-traded oil was 4.2% higher at $82.62.

The latest strikes coincided with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s visit to Washington, where he met Trump at the White House and attended the funeral of US Senator Lindsey Graham, a prominent Iran hawk.

At least 624 US military service members have been wounded since Trump ordered strikes against Iran in February, according to recent Pentagon data.

The Pentagon said 417 of those personnel were injured in relation to Operation Epic Fury, the joint US-Israeli military operation against Iran.

Volker Türk spoke out on Thursday following reports of a significant build-up of Rapid Support Forces (RSF) militia and allied troops around the city, accompanied by intensified drone strikes and artillery shelling. 

Sudan has been engulfed in war since April 2023, when fighting erupted between the formerly allied Sudanese Armed Forces and the RSF, plunging one of Africa’s largest countries into a conflict that has become one of the world’s worst humanitarian emergencies. 

According to humanitarian affairs office, OCHA, the war has displaced more than 13 million people internally and driven millions more to the brink of famine, with humanitarian access severely constrained across much of the country.

UN chief calls for international intervention

UN Secretary-General António Guterres also issued an alert on Thursday via his spokesperson, expressing alarm over the possible “imminent ground offensive”.

“Far too many times in this conflict, clear warnings have failed to trigger concerted action by the international community,” the statement continued.

“The Secretary-General urges all those with influence over the parties to exert it to prevent further bloodshed. We must not allow the horrors of El Fasher to be repeated in El Obeid.”

Drone strikes multiply

Dozens of drone strikes have hit El Obeid over the past two weeks, particularly targeting fuel stations and trucks, killing civilians and cutting off access to basic services.

“The imminent offensive against El Obeid risks commission of serious international crimes and deepens the catastrophic impact on an already beleaguered civilian population,” Mr. Türk said. 

“The States with influence have the duty to exercise it now to stop this madness in its tracks.”

El Obeid’s population has endured siege-like conditions for more than 18 months.

Repeat massacre threat

Mr. Türk drew a direct parallel with atrocities documented in El Fasher and the Zamzam displacement camp in North Darfur last year, warning that the same pattern was now unfolding in North Kordofan. 

“We have seen this playbook before,” he said. “We cannot allow the repeat of the preventable atrocities we documented in El Fasher and Zamzam [internally displaced persons] IDP camp in North Darfur last year.”

The High Commissioner also urged all parties to ensure the safe movement of civilians who have repeatedly been forced to flee violence in search of basic services.

Mr. Türk’s warning was unambiguous. “Let this be a stark warning to the world about an impending human rights disaster and worsening humanitarian situation,” he said. “The world is watching, and those responsible for violations must be held accountable.”

Protect the aid effort

UN chief Guterres underscored that humanitarians are continuing to provide aid across the Kordofan region, “despite the deteriorating security situation”.

 A humanitarian worker was among the civilians killed by drone strikes in residential neighbourhoods in El Obeid over the past week.

 “The Secretary-General stresses that humanitarian workers and supplies must be able to move safely. Humanitarian operations must be protected and facilitated. El Obeid is a crucial hub for humanitarian response efforts across the broader Kordofan region.”

A prominent Palestinian militia leader in Gaza who opposed Hamas has been killed.

Yasser Abu Shabab headed the so-called Popular Forces group, which has dozens of fighters and operates in Israeli-controlled territory near the southern city of Rafah.

The Popular Forces said in a statement that Abu Shabab was shot while “attempting to resolve a dispute” between members of the Abu Seneima family. It dismissed as “misleading” reports that he was killed by Hamas, which had accused him of collaborating with Israel.

An earlier statement from Abu Shabab’s Bedouin tribe, the Tarabin, said he had been killed “at the hands of the resistance”, and accused him of betraying the Palestinian people.

Other sources said his death was the result of an internal power struggle.

A Hamas statement said the “fate that befell” Abu Shabab was “the inevitable fate of all who betray their people and homeland and are content to be tools in the hands of the occupation [Israel]”, without claiming involvement in his killing.

Israel’s Army Radio cited a security source as saying that Abu Shabab had died of his wounds after being evacuated to Soroka hospital in the southern Israeli city of Beersheba. But the hospital denied that he died under their care.

The statement from the Popular Forces pledged to continue on Abu Shabab’s “path until the last terrorist is eliminated from the soil of Gaza and a bright and secure future is built for our people, who believe in peace”.

In June, Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu confirmed that Israel was arming Palestinian clans in Gaza that he said were opposed to Hamas.

It came after Israeli media reported that he had authorised the supply of weapons to the Popular Forces. However, the militia denied that it was being armed by Israel.

The Popular Forces have been accused of looting humanitarian aid trucks sent into Gaza during the war, which the militia has also denied. Reports in Israel have also suggested that two of its members have previous links to the Islamic State group (IS).

Since the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas began almost eight weeks ago, Abu Shabab had reportedly been one of several anti-Hamas militia leaders jostling for position in the second phase of US President Donald Trump’s Gaza peace plan.

It would involve setting up an interim government, deploying an international stabilisation force, the withdrawal of Israeli troops, and the disarmament of Hamas.

Under the first phase, Hamas agreed to return all 48 living and dead hostages it was still holding in exchange for the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners and detainees in Israeli jails, as well as a partial Israeli withdrawal and a surge in humanitarian aid.

The body of one dead Israeli hostage is yet to be returned.

Israel’s government has previously said it would not join talks on the second phase until Hamas has returned all the hostages. However, Trump said on Wednesday that the second phase was “going to happen pretty soon”.

The war in Gaza was triggered by the Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on 7 October 2023, in which about 1,200 people were killed and 251 others were taken hostage.

More than 70,120 people have been killed in Israeli attacks in Gaza since then, according to the territory’s Hamas-run health ministry.

António Guterres said he was “appalled by the relentless attacks” by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) militia on the North Darfur state capital, UN Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric said in a statement.

The paramilitary group and the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) have been battling for control of devastated country since April 2023 and El Fasher has been the epicentre of fighting for more than 500 days.

Shelling, incursions and summary executions

Recent weeks have seen near-continuous shelling in the city and repeated deadly incursions into the adjoining Abu Shouk displacement camp, where famine conditions were identified last December.

Since 11 August, the UN has documented the killing of at least 125 civilians in the El Fasher area, including summary executions – although the actual number is likely to be higher.

“The Secretary-General is alarmed at the grave risks of serious violations of international humanitarian law as well as violations and abuses of international human rights law, including ethnically motivated ones,” said Mr. Dujarric.

Aid awaiting entry

Meanwhile, supplies are pre-positioned near El Fasher, but the UN and partners continue to face obstacles in moving them into the city.  

Some 70 trucks of humanitarian assistance are currently waiting in Nyala, South Darfur, a top official with the UN aid coordination office OCHA said on Thursday in New York.

Mr. Dujarric also noted that repeated attacks on humanitarian personnel and assets in North Darfur have occurred over recent months.

Ceasefire and a lasting peace

“The Secretary-General calls for an immediate ceasefire in and around the El Fasher area,” he said.

Furthermore, the UN chief “insists that immediate steps must be taken to protect civilians and enable the safe, unhindered and sustained delivery of humanitarian assistance into the area, and to allow any civilians seeking to leave the area voluntarily to do so safely.” 

 In the interim, the Secretary-General’s Personal Envoy for Sudan, Ramtane Lamamra, continues to engage the warring parties and “stands ready to support genuine efforts to halt the violence and establish an inclusive political process that the people of Sudan demand.”