Drone attacks cause ‘minor injuries’ to coalition forces in Iraq: US
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - US army on Wednesday announced destroying and damaging three drones in Iraq, adding that the attacks caused “minor injuries” to the global coalition against the Islamic State (ISIS) forces.
“In the last 24 hours, the U.S. military defended against three drones near U.S. and Coalition forces in Iraq. In western Iraq, U.S. forces engaged two drones, destroying one and damaging the second, resulting in minor injuries to Coalition forces. Separately in northern Iraq, U.S. forces engaged and destroyed a drone, resulting in no injuries or damage. We are continuing to assess the impacts to operations,” said the US Central Command (CENTCOM) in a statement.
“In this moment of heightened alert, we are vigilantly monitoring the situation in Iraq and the region. We want to emphasize U.S. forces will defend U.S. and Coalition forces against any threat,” added CENTCOM.
The statement did not reveal the exact location of the attacks or blame any parties.
The Islamic Resistance in Iraq, a network of shadow Iraqi militia groups backed by Iran and affiliated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), said earlier on Wednesday that it targeted the Harir airbase in Erbil province which houses US personnel with a drone strike.
The statement described the attack as a retaliatory strike in support of Operation Al-Aqsa Flood, launched by Palestinian Hamas militants against Israel earlier this month.
Earlier on Wednesday, US officials told Reuters that the military had thwarted an attack against its forces in western Iraq’s Ain al-Asad airbase, and had intercepted the “one-way attack drones” before they could strike the base. Located in Anbar province, Ain al-Asad airbase houses US-led coalition personnel and Iraqi army troops.
The attacks came after pro-Iran Iraqi militias warned the US that its bases and troops in Iraq would become “legitimate targets” if it decided to directly intervene in the ongoing Israel-Gaza war.
Updated at 11:45 pm