BAGHDAD (Washington Insider Magazine) – According to Iraqi security authorities, up to 12 missiles were fired near the US embassy in Irbil on Sunday. According to a US defense official, missiles launched from Iran were fired against the city.
There were no casualties recorded. Officials in the United States and Iraq presented conflicting descriptions of the attack and its consequences. There was no harm to any US government property, according to another US official, and there was no evidence the objective was the consulate structure, which is new and now vacant.
Initially, an Iraqi representative in Baghdad claimed that three rockets had hit the US consulate, which was the intended objective of the strike. Later, Lawk Ghafari, the chief of Kurdistan’s international media office, reported that none of the missiles reached the US facility, but that the rockets impacted locations near the compound.
The number of missiles launched and where they fell are still unknown, according to a US defense official. Both U.S. officials talked to The Associated Press on the condition of anonymity because they were not allowed to discuss the incident by name.
There were no initial reports of deaths from the incident, which happened just after midnight and inflicted physical damage in the region, according to Iraqi security authorities. They talked on the condition of anonymity, as required by law.
The missiles were launched from Iran, according to one Iraqi official, who did not elaborate. The kind of missile could not be confirmed by US officials.
The event is being probed by the Iraqi government and the Kurdish Regional Government, according to the second US source.
The incident happened only days after 2 members of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard were killed in an Israeli attack near Damascus, Syria. According to ABC NEWS, Iran’s foreign ministry fiercely condemned the strike on Wednesday and pledged retaliation.
Iran’s state-run IRNA media outlet said on Sunday that Iraqi media acknowledged the strikes in Irbil, but did not identify where they came from.
The incident occurred as talks in Vienna over Iran’s shattered nuclear accord came to a “pause” due to Russian demands for sanctions on Russia for its war in Ukraine.
Iran and Iranian-backed militias are increasingly threatening US soldiers and partners in Syria and Iraq, according to the top US commander for the Middle East.