A few dozen ballistic missiles were launched from outside Iraq crashing into the regional capital of Kurdish in the country in Erbil on Sunday, Kurdish officials said, added that there were no casualties.
There are no direct claims about further responsibilities or details available. A US State Department spokesman called it an “outrageous attack” but said there was no American who was injured and there was no damage to US government facilities in Erbil.
Iraq State TV quotes the strength of counter-terrorism of the Kurdistan region which says 12 missiles launched from outside Iraq hit Erbil. Not immediately clear where they landed.
US forces placed in the Erbil International Airport complex in the past arrived under fire from rocket attacks and drones blamed by US officials in the militia group that was in harmony with Iran, but there were no such attacks for several months.
The last time ballistic missile was directed at US forces was in January 2020 – Iran’s retaliation for the US murder in the beginning of the Military Commander of Qassem Soleimani at Baghdad Airport.
No US personnel were killed in the 2020 attack but many were injured.
Iraq and Syrian neighbors regularly scenes violence between the United States and Iran. The Shiite Islamic militia supported by Iran has attacked US forces in both countries and Washington sometimes returned with air strikes.
Israeli air strikes in Syria on Monday killed two members of the Iranian Revolution Guard Corps (IRGC), the Chinese Media said this week. IRGC vowed to reply, he said.
Kurdish officials did not immediately say where the missile hit. A spokesman for regional authorities said there was no flight disturbance at Erbil Airport.
Erbil residents posted online videos showing a large explosion, and some said the explosion shook their homes. Reuters cannot independently verify the videos.
Iraq has been rocked by chronic instability since the defeat of the Sunni Islam Islamic group in 2017 by the loose Iraqi coalition, Iran’s lead and supported troops.
Since then, the militia that is aligned Iran has regularly attacked US and diplomatic military sites in Iraq, the US and many Iraqi officials said. Iran denied the involvement in the attack. Domestic politics also triggered violence.
Iraqi political parties, most of whom have armed wings, are currently in tense talks because they formed a government after the election in October. Shiite militia groups close to Iran warn personally that they will use violence if they are left out of the powerful coalition.
The head of political enemies from these groups included their strong Shiite rivals, Cleric Populis Moqtada al-Sadr, who had vowed to form a government that left Iranian allies and including Kurds and Sunni.