Türkiye’s Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan and his Saudi counterpart Prince Faisal bin Farhan discussed the latest regional developments and efforts to end ongoing conflicts in a phone call on Friday, Turkish diplomatic sources said. The conversation took place as the five-month war involving Iran expands beyond its main fronts and draws additional countries into the hostilities.
Saudi military operations
Saudi Arabia this week joined the United States in carrying out strikes against logistical sites and weapons depots it said belonged to Iran-aligned groups, responding to drone attacks on oil facilities and military bases in the kingdom, according to the sources. Iraq’s Popular Mobilization Forces said 20 of its members were killed and 32 others injured in the airstrikes.
Following the strikes, the so-called Islamic Resistance in Iraq gave the Iraqi government until mid-August to take firm measures against the “aggressors,” threatening attacks on US and Saudi forces. The US has also carried out a series of strikes across Iran recently over differences on navigation in the Strait of Hormuz and Tehran’s targeting of US assets in the region, including in Jordan.
US vows continued strikes
President Donald Trump on Friday said Washington will continue striking Iran “very hard,” and wants to “win” the war that began in February but was paused in April after a ceasefire. A memorandum to finalize a peace deal was signed in June. Tensions have also risen between the Houthis in Yemen and Riyadh, with the group striking facilities in Saudi Arabia and announcing a blockade of Saudi-linked commercial vessels through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, which connects the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden.
The Houthis said the blockade was in retaliation for an airstrike on Sanaa airport that they blamed on the kingdom.