Shafaq News- Sanaa

Coordination and joint operations among members of the “Axis of Resistance” in Iraq, Iran, Lebanon, Palestine and Yemen remain in place, the assistant director of the Moral Guidance Department in the Houthi-run Yemeni armed forces told Shafaq News on Saturday.

Abed Al-Thawr said military operations launched from Yemen or Iraq are coordinated unless individual factions act independently, adding that any threat to Iraq represented a threat to Yemen and the wider Axis of Resistance.

Addressing Saudi accusations that attacks against the Kingdom originated from Iraq, Al-Thawr accused Riyadh of trying to attribute some operations to Iraqi territory, reflecting “its failure after striking Yemen.”

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“Yemen [previously] struck Saudi Arabia and officially announced through its channels and media that the strike was Yemeni,” Al-Thawr said. “Saudi Arabia insists that the strike came from Iraq despite Yemen claiming responsibility for it.”

Yesterday, Saudi Arabia reported drone attacks coming from Iraq on its East-West Pipeline in the Riyadh and Medina regions. It had chosen not to retaliate at this stage following a request from Iraqi Prime Minister Ali Al-Zaidi for an opportunity to prevent attacks launched from Iraqi territory against Saudi Arabia and neighboring countries.

Iraqi PM approved an Iranian request for a joint inquiry into drone launch platforms found near the Iraq-Iran border after an Iraqi investigation found that the attacks on Saudi Arabia originated from a site in Maysan, a southern province bordering Iran.

An Iraqi investigation found that the attacks originated from a site in Maysan, a southern province bordering Iran. Baghdad removed the Maysan Operations commander and provincial police chief, while a source told Shafaq News that three border crossings with Iran were closed amid allegations that drone components and weapons had entered Iraq from Iranian territory. The Islamic Resistance in Iraq (IRI) denied involvement and said it was ready to cooperate with the government investigation, while no group has claimed responsibility.

In late July, Saudi Arabia and the United States carried out strikes against Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) positions in Iraq, killing 20 and wounding 32 personnel. Riyadh said the operation came in response to drone attacks by what it described as “Iran-aligned Iraqi factions” against energy facilities in the Kingdom, while the IRI rejected Saudi claims that the attacks originated from Iraq.

Read more: Wednesday's US-Saudi attack on Iraq: What Is Known