https://removepaywalls.com/https://www.nytimes.com/2026/07/29/world/middleeast/saudi-arabia-us-iran-war.html

Saudi Arabia entered the U.S.-Iran war on Wednesday with airstrikes in Iraq. Its delayed entry, six months into the war, illustrated the bind the kingdom faces as it tries to deter attacks without getting sucked into the broader conflict, analysts say.

The joint Saudi-American strikes marked the first time the kingdom acknowledged direct involvement in the U.S. war effort, although Saudi Arabia had carried out secret strikes against Iran earlier in the war.

“The kingdom confirms that it is not seeking escalation but that it will respond to any aggression,” said a Saudi defense ministry spokesman, Maj. General Turki al-Malki.

His statement invoked the right to self-defense and quoted a line from the Quran calling for believers to attack those who attack them in a similar manner.