US-Saudi strikes in Iraq kill about 20 Iranian ‘advisers’, report says

Saudi Arabia participated alongside the United States in the strikes, which targeted militia positions in Iraq.

By Vered Weiss, World Israel News

Joint U.S.-Saudi airstrikes in Iraq killed about 20 Iranian advisers, including members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, in an operation aimed at weakening the military capabilities of Tehran-backed militias, The New York Times reported Wednesday, citing a U.S. official.

The official said the operation intentionally targeted both personnel and infrastructure, with planners seeking to eliminate Revolutionary Guard members and technical specialists while also damaging the militias’ ability to launch missiles and drones.

Among those killed were IRGC personnel and “technical advisers,” the report said.

The figure reported by the U.S. official was substantially higher than initial claims from militia sources, which had said six Iranian nationals were killed in the overnight attacks.

Saudi Arabia participated alongside the United States in the strikes, which targeted militia positions in Iraq late Tuesday.

The attacks prompted a response from the Islamic Resistance in Iraq, an umbrella group representing pro-Iranian militias, which vowed retaliation.

“Our response to the American enemy is inevitable, and it may be directed at its agents in Saudi Arabia whenever circumstances require,” the group said.

The organization also called on Iraq’s government to respond, giving it until Aug. 6 to “show that it can defend Iraq’s sovereignty.”

The developments followed rising tensions between Washington and Tehran after what U.S. officials described as a “surprise attack” by Iran on an American military base in Jordan.

Iran launched five missiles at the installation overnight. All were intercepted, according to media sources.

President Donald Trump said the United States would answer the attack with force.

Speaking to Fox News, Trump said the U.S. military would respond forcefully, while warning that additional strikes against Iran remained a possibility.

The New York Times reported that the Iraq operation focused on individuals connected to Iran’s military presence as well as facilities supporting the missile and drone capabilities of pro-Iranian militias, reflecting a strategy aimed at reducing both leadership and operational capacity.