ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - An Iraqi pro-Iran armed group said Tuesday it had carried out drone attacks on the Kurdistan Region amid repeated missile and drone strikes killing Peshmerga fighters and civilians.
In a statement, Jaysh al-Ghadab (Army of Rage), part of the so-called Islamic Resistance in Iraq, said it carried out drone attacks targeting Israeli and US interests in “northern Iraq.”
Less than two hours before the statement was posted on the group’s Telegram channel, an explosive-laden drone attack killed a married couple in Erbil province. Kurdish authorities said three drones “launched from Iran” hit a village north of the province where the incident took place.
Iraqi pro-Iran armed groups aligned with the Tehran-led “Axis of Resistance” have previously claimed similar attacks, describing them as retaliation for the US-Israeli military campaign against Iran.
In an earlier statement issued days before the start of the war on February 28, the group announced its “full readiness…at all levels - human, military, and electronic - to wage this ideological, religious, legitimate, and sacred battle, as it is a pivotal battle in which the enemies of God threaten our religious and ideological existence.”
In its 41 days of activity, the group has claimed responsibility for 31 attacks, including 12 in Bahrain and nine in Kuwait, five of which targeted US embassy support bases in Baghdad. Four of the attacks it claimed were against the Kurdistan Region.
Jaysh al-Ghadab, along with Saraya Awliya al-Dam and Ashab al-Kahf, are among the Iraqi groups that have claimed responsibility for attacks on the Kurdistan Region since the start of the conflict.
Since the onset of the war, Rudaw monitoring indicates that the Kurdistan Region has endured 678 drone and missile attacks. Of these, 540 targeted Erbil province, 111 struck Sulaimani, 25 hit Duhok, and two impacted Halabja.
Before Tuesday’s incident, the attacks had killed 14 people and injured 93 others, including Peshmerga forces, Asayish personnel, fighters from Iranian Kurdish opposition groups, a French soldier, and multiple civilians.
Hastyar Qadir contributed to this report from Erbil.
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