U.S. Army AH-64 Apache helicopters from 1st Battalion, 227th Aviation Regiment, 34th Combat Aviation Brigade, launch flares as they conduct overflights of the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad, Iraq December 31, 2019. U.S. Army/Spc. Khalil Jenkins/CJTF-OIR Public Affairs
A rocket attack targeted the United States Embassy in Baghdad caused minor damage but no casualties early on December 8, according to American and Iraqi officials.
An Iraqi security official told news agencies that 14 Katyusha rockets were fired, of which some struck near one of the U.S. Embassy’s gates while others fell in the river. According to the official, the attack caused material damage but no casualties.
A U.S. military official also confirmed that a multi-rocket attack was launched at American and coalition forces in the vicinity of the embassy complex and the Union III base, which houses offices of the U.S.-led coalition battling ISIS. The official added that no casualties and no damage to infrastructure were reported.
An embassy spokesperson said later that the U.S. Embassy was attacked by two salvos of rockets in the early morning,adding that no specific group had claimed responsibility for firing the rockets but early indications pointed to Iran-aligned forces.
“We again call on the government of Iraq, as we have done on many occasions, to do all in its power to protect diplomatic and Coalition partner personnel and facilities,” the official said. “We reiterate that we reserve the right to self-defense and to protect our personnel anywhere in the world.”
Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani said in a statement that “targeting diplomatic missions is something that cannot be justified.” He called the attack an “insult to Iraq, its stability and security,” and promised to “pursue the perpetrators of the attack …and bring them to justice.”
The attack was the first to target the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad’s highly-fortified Green Zone since the war in the Palestinian Gaza Strip broke out.
While no group claimed responsibility for the rocket attack, the Islamic Resistance in Iraq (IRI), an umbrella group of Iranian-backed armed factions, remains the main suspect.
The IRI claimed responsibility for dozens of attacks that targeted bases housing U.S. troops in Iraq and neighboring Syria since Israel declared war on Gaza two months ago. The Pentagon reported 78 attacks over the past weeks, of which 37 were in Iraq and 41 in Syria.
Following the embassy attack, the IRI claimed separate attacks on Ayn al-Asad Air Base in the western Iraqi province of al-Anbar, which is used by U.S. forces, and on a base located at the Conoco gas plant in the eastern Syrian province of Deir Ezzor.
The aim of recent attacks against U.S. forces in Iraq and Syria is to pressure Washington over its unconditional support for the Israeli war on Gaza, which has so far claimed the lives of more than 17,000 Palestinians.
iraqi government pathetic, there should’t even be a us embassy in iraq, and if there is it should be the so called government attacking it.
the iraqi gov’t already made an official statement for the full withdrawal of us presence in their country. naturally, the us ignores such things.
“and the union iii base, which houses offices of the u.s.-led coalition battling isis.”
muricans pigs as well as their english and fake roman handlers wouldn’t create and finance their own enemies through numerous proxies, would they?
a sad old script befitting their perverted status as non-human degenerates.
us embassy is not a diplomatic mission but a palace of colonial gubernator. iraq is occupied country and so called embassy is command center of occupation invaders.
už nech sa naučia konečne poriadne mieriť a potom až môžu strieľať. takto mi to pripadá ako mrhanie časom. iba čo dráždia nepriateľa a trochu ho pri tom otravujú. ale to je málo. okupantov treba zahnať preč, alebo rovno zlikvidovať!!!