ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Drone attacks by Iran's affiliated armed groups against the US bases in Kurdistan Region have escalated over the past 24 hours despite tightened security measures by Iraqi forces, striking multiple provinces and causing both human casualties and material damage.
Several areas across Sulaimani, Erbil, and Duhok provinces were targeted from Thursday afternoon until late in the day, Rudaw has learned. Additionally, a drone crashed between Kirkuk and Sulaimani provinces.
In Erbil province, attacks continued throughout the evening. A drone targeted the old training facility of the Kurdistan Democratic Party of Iran (KDPI) in the Koya district, near an old ammunition depot close to the Harmota citadel, with no damage being reported.
The headquarters of the organization of Iranian Kurdistan Struggle (Sazmani Khabat) in the Rizgari sub-district of Khabat was also attacked. Two Khabat Peshmerga members were wounded as a result of the attack, several sources told Rudaw.
The ongoing attacks come despite tightened security measures in Iraq’s Nineveh Plains and the deployment of additional army units to areas previously used to launch strikes on Erbil, a local official said Thursday. He predicted that these steps could significantly reduce future attacks.
Mohammed Jassim Kakai, head of the security and defense committee in the Nineveh Provincial Council, told Rudaw in an interview that Iraqi authorities have boosted intelligence operations and stationed more troops across the region following a series of missile and drone attacks targeting the Kurdistan Region’s capital. He said the measures could "reduce the attacks by 90 percent."
“We have conducted a large distribution of the Iraqi Army, and intelligence capabilities have been increased across all sectors,” Kakai said. He added that he "cannot say it won't happen again," but stressed that "the Iraqi Army and local police in the area have all been put on high alert to prevent any group or party that wants to use Nineveh… for their personal goals."
However, a high-ranking administrative source in Erbil told Rudaw on Friday that "he attacks in Erbil province are becoming more widespread and comprehensive day by day," adding that the majority of the attacks were "intercepted by defense systems and rendered ineffective."
A late Thursday drone strike in Erbil's Soran administration targeted a civilian’s home, causing a large fire. The homeowner told Rudaw that "there were no casualties."
Communication towers on Korek Mountain and a garden in Shaqlawa district were also attacked, though the mayor of Shaqlawa, Sware Akram, said the attack "caused no damage."
In Sulaimani province, Mount Zamnako near Darbandikhan district was attacked in the early hours of Thursday. Amanj Mohammed Kasas, the mayor of Darbandikhan, told Rudaw that the drones "targeted communication towers on the mountain and caused damage to them."
Later in the night, the Surdash camp in Dukan district, housing the opposition Komala Kurdistan's Organization of the Communist Party of Iran (CPI), was struck. Sources told Rudaw that "there were no casualties in that attack."
In Duhok province, oil fields in the Chamanke sub-district were targeted by two drones, but Rudaw’s reporter said that "hey did not hit their targets and caused no damage."
The Iraqi Security Media Cell confirmed that a drone had crashed between Sulaimani and Erbil.
Comments
Rudaw moderates all comments submitted on our website. We welcome comments which are relevant to the article and encourage further discussion about the issues that matter to you. We also welcome constructive criticism about Rudaw.
To be approved for publication, however, your comments must meet our community guidelines.
We will not tolerate the following: profanity, threats, personal attacks, vulgarity, abuse (such as sexism, racism, homophobia or xenophobia), or commercial or personal promotion.
Comments that do not meet our guidelines will be rejected. Comments are not edited – they are either approved or rejected.
Post a comment