Gulf countries warn of rising threat from Iran-backed militias and proxies

The Guardian · 🇬🇧 public United Kingdom · Mar 28, 2026 · 814 words · By Hannah Ellis-Petersen

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What to know about Gulf countries warn of rising threat from Iran-backed militias and proxies

The article discusses Gulf countries' concerns about attacks from Iran-backed militias and proxy groups in the Middle East. It mentions actions taken by Gulf states against these groups, including arrests and military operations, and cites an analyst's warning about potential escalation. The text highlights regional tensions and the perceived threat of Iran's influence.

Propaganda risk 40%

Claims checked 18

Techniques found 0

Topics 0

Coverage spectrum

Coverage gap: Low Left coverage

Left17%

Center66%

Right17%

6 sources compared across this story cluster. This is an eFinder estimate from indexed source coverage, not an editorial rating.

What happened

Gulf countries have raised concerns over the prospect of attacks by Iran-backed militias and proxy armed groups in the region, which they fear could destabilise their regimes and escalate the war in the Middle East.

Why it matters

In a joint statement this week, Qatar, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and Jordan condemned Iranian attacks on their soil, both as strikes carried out directly from Iran and “through their proxies and armed factions they support in the…

Common ground

On Wednesday, Kuwait said it had foiled a plot to kill state leaders, and arrested six suspects believed to be associated with Iran’s most powerful proxy group, Hezbollah.

Perspective signals

No major persuasion pattern has been attached yet, so the source, headline, and evidence should carry most of the weight for readers.

Follow-up questions

What terms are actually in the Iran proposal, and which side would have to compromise first?
What evidence would most clearly confirm or weaken the claim that Gulf countries experienced growing cooperation with Iran in recent years, but proxy groups largely remained quiet in the Gulf?
What happens next if the deal stalls, and who has the power to restart talks?

open_in_new Read the original article: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/mar/28/gulf-countries-threat-iran-backed-…

analyticsAnalysis

40%

Propaganda Score

confidence: 0%

Moderate concerns. Notable use of persuasive or loaded language.

fact_checkClaims Checked

eFinder analyzed this article and checked 18 claims against available evidence, cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia. Here is what the fact-checking layer found.

schedule Pending 8

help Insufficient Evidence 7

verified Verified By Reference 3

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Claim 1: “Gulf countries experienced growing cooperation with Iran in recent years, but proxy groups largely remained quiet in the Gulf”

INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it insufficient evidence based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

verified

Claim 2: “The Houthis confirmed they had launched a missile strike on Israel, the first time the proxy group have admitted involvement in the war in the Middle East”

VERIFIED BY REFERENCE

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it verified by reference based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Abdul-Malik Badr al-Din al-Houthi (born 22 May 1979) is a Yemeni politician and religious leader who is the second leader of the Houthis (Ansar Allah), an organization principally made up of Zaydi Shi…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abdul-Malik_al-Houthi

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Houthis, officially known as Ansar Allah, is a Zaydi revivalist and Shia Islamist political and military organization that emerged from Yemen in the 1990s. It is predominantly made up of Zaydis, w…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Houthis

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Middle Eastern crisis is an ongoing series of interrelated wars, conflicts, and heightened instability in the Middle East as a result of the Gaza war and genocide. It has primarily consisted of co…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Middle_Eastern_crisis_(2023–pr…

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Claim 3: “Saudi Arabia is engaged in conflict with the Houthis in Yemen”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

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Claim 4: “Saudi Arabia has a history of attacks by Hezbollah al-Hejaz, and Bahrain accuses Iran of planting proxy cells”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

help

Claim 5: “Gulf countries have arrested Iranian proxy groups, including cells in Qatar, Bahrain, and Kuwait”

INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it insufficient evidence based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

help

Claim 6: “Kuwait said it had foiled a plot to kill state leaders, and arrested six suspects believed to be associated with Iran’s most powerful proxy group, Hezbollah”

INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it insufficient evidence based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

help

Claim 7: “Iran's retaliation has primarily targeted Gulf states following the US and Israel's bombing of Iran”

INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it insufficient evidence based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

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Claim 8: “Bilal Saab stated that sleeper cells linked to Iran have become active, with arrests in Kuwait and the UAE”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

help

Claim 9: “Iran has launched thousands of missiles and drones at Gulf states, with internal incidents linked to Iranian proxy groups”

INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it insufficient evidence based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

verified

Claim 10: “Qatar, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and Jordan condemned Iranian attacks on their soil”

VERIFIED BY REFERENCE

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it verified by reference based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Iran and Saudi Arabia are engaged in a proxy war over influence in the Middle East and other regions of the Muslim world. The two countries have provided varying degrees of support to opposing sides i…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iran–Saudi_Arabia_proxy_war

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Qatar diplomatic crisis was a high-profile deterioration of relations between Qatar and the Arab League between 2017 and 2021. It began when Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and Eg…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qatar_diplomatic_crisis

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Qatar national football team (Arabic: منتخب قطر لكرة القدم), nicknamed "The Maroons", represents Qatar in international football, and is controlled by the Qatar Football Association, which is affi…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qatar_national_football_team

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Claim 11: “Gulf states urged the Iraqi government to halt attacks from Iraqi territory by Iran-backed groups”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

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Claim 12: “Gulf states reported attacks from Iraqi territory by Iran-backed militias”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

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Claim 13: “Iran has used proxy militias as a pillar of its foreign and security policy”

INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it insufficient evidence based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

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Claim 14: “Bilal Saab warned that Iranian proxy groups pose an existential threat to Gulf states, comparable to Iran's influence in Iraq”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

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Claim 15: “Analysts note the threat from Iranian proxy groups in the Gulf is less severe than during the Iran-Iraq war but is growing”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

verified

Claim 16: “The most prominent examples are Hezbollah in Lebanon and the Houthis in Yemen but other brutal and influential Iran-backed militias also operate in Iraq and Syria”

VERIFIED BY REFERENCE

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it verified by reference based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Since the Iranian Revolution in 1979, the government of the Islamic Republic of Iran has been accused by several countries of training, financing, and providing weapons and safe havens for non-state m…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iran_and_state-sponsored_terro…

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — In March 2025, the United States launched a large campaign of air and naval strikes against Houthi targets in Yemen. Codenamed Operation Rough Rider, it was the first large-scale US military operation…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/March–May_2025_United_States_a…

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Yemeni civil war (Arabic: الحرب الأهلية اليمنية, romanized: al-ḥarb al-ʾahlīyah al-yamanīyah) is an ongoing multilateral civil war that began in late 2014 mainly between the Rashad al-Alimi-led Pr…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yemeni_civil_war_(2014–present…

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Claim 17: “Gulf countries have raised concerns over the prospect of attacks by Iran-backed militias and proxy armed groups in the region”

INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it insufficient evidence based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

schedule

Claim 18: “Gulf countries are considering offensive actions against Iran due to concerns over proxy groups”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.