Saudi Arabia and UAE gearing up to join US-Israel war on Iran, says WSJ report

Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have made moves to join the Iran war, which could indicate an intensification of hostilities, reported the Wall Street Journal.

According to the WSJ, which cited persons with knowledge of the situation, Saudi Arabia agreed to grant the US military access to King Fahd Air Base. This appears to be a reversal of Saudi Arabia’s previous statement that its bases could not be used to fight its longstanding competitor.

The United Arab Emirates closed an Iranian-owned hospital and club, undermining a vital source of support for Tehran, according to persons the publication spoke with.
According to the WSJ, videos appeared to demonstrate that some of the missiles used in the attacks on Iran were fired from Bahrain. The US military refused to disclose whether it was receiving assistance from neighbouring nations.
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The reported actions by Washington’s Gulf allies show that they are becoming irritated with Iran, which has attacked targets in some neighbouring countries in retaliation for attacks by the US and Israel. Iran retaliated against energy assets throughout the Middle East after Israel attacked an Iranian gas site last week.

Israel later declared it would no longer target energy infrastructure after President Donald Trump chastised the country.

The WSJ article came after Trump declared on Monday that he would postpone targeting Iranian energy facilities for five days following what he described as “productive conversations” with the nation. Trump has not yet disclosed any information about the parties involved in the negotiations or the terms of a deal.

On Monday, Axios revealed that Steve Witkoff was in talks with the speaker of the Iranian Parliament, Mohammad-Bagher Ghalibaf. In a post on X, Ghalibaf stated that no talks with the US have taken place. According to Iranian state television, the US has recently attempted to talk with Iran through middlemen, but the Tehran administration has not reacted.