ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - US diplomats were recently ambushed in Baghdad by “Iran-aligned militia groups,” the State Department said, adding that Iraq’s ambassador to Washington was summoned and informed that the United States will not “tolerate attacks” on its personnel or assets, and expects the Iraqi government to take concrete steps to dismantle such armed factions.
In a statement on Thursday, US State Department Deputy Spokesperson Tommy Pigott said that Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau summoned Iraqi Ambassador Nizar Khirullah to “express the U.S. government’s strong condemnation of the egregious terrorist attacks by Iran-aligned militia groups launched from Iraqi territory against U.S. diplomatic personnel and facilities.
Pigott cited a “[Wednesday] April 8 ambush of U.S. diplomats in Baghdad” among the attacks, without providing further details.
However, Rudaw tracking shows that the Baghdad Diplomatic Support Center (BDSC) and areas near Baghdad International Airport were targeted in a series of drone attacks on Wednesday. The Center is a major logistical and administrative hub for US personnel, including residential and office facilities.
Pigott also highlighted the “hundreds” of attacks targeting American citizens and assets in recent weeks, noting that Landau acknowledged the efforts of Iraqi security forces to “respond to these terrorist attacks,” while emphasizing “the Iraqi government’s failure to prevent them.”
The senior State Department official further added that some elements linked to the Iraqi government “continue to actively provide political, financial, and operational cover for the militias,” which “adversely impacts the U.S.-Iraq relationship.”
Washington “will not tolerate attacks” on its interests and “expects the Iraqi government to immediately take all necessary measures to dismantle Iran-aligned militia groups in Iraq,” Landau affirmed.
The US and Israel launched a coordinated military campaign against Iran on February 28, with the US Central Command (CENTCOM) reporting on Tuesday that the operation - dubbed Operation Epic Fury - involved strikes on more than 13,000 targets across Iran, focusing on sites deemed to “pose an imminent threat.”
CENTCOM Commander Brad Cooper stated in late March that the operation aims to “eliminate Iran’s ability to project power in meaningful ways beyond its borders.”
In response, Tehran has carried out thousands of drone and missile strikes across the Middle East, targeting alleged US assets - particularly in Gulf Arab states - as well as launching retaliatory attacks against Israel.
The Iranian response has also involved Iraqi armed groups aligned with the Tehran-led ‘Axis of Resistance,’ with several factions claiming responsibility for attacks on purported US targets in the region, including in Iraq and the Kurdistan Region.
The US embassy in Baghdad has, since late February, issued repeated high-level travel warnings to American citizens in Iraq, urging them to leave the country immediately and cautioning that Iran-aligned Iraqi armed groups may carry out attacks against them.
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