ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The head of Iraq’s National Security Service (INSS) stated on Wednesday that the recent strike on the Khor Mor gas field differs from previous attacks on the Kurdistan Region, suggesting the incident is linked to internal political disputes rather than regional conflict, based on confidential data.
"The day before yesterday is a completely different matter. Right now there is a crisis, as everyone knows—an internal crisis within the Kurdistan Region between the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) and the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP)," Basim al-Badri told reporters during a press conference at Chatham House in London.
Badri's remarks follow a late Sunday strike that halted gas production at the Khor Mor field west of Sulaimani after an unknown projectile hit the facility’s warehouse and truck loading unit, which stores nearly 1,500 tons of cooking gas across 170 tankers.
A security source told Rudaw’s Peshawa Bakhtyar that the attack was launched from the disputed town of Tuz Khurmatu south of Kirkuk and had caused a "massive fire."
Badri dismissed media reports that drones were launched from Tuz Khurmatu, stating that officials must rely on verified intelligence rather than media accounts. He went on to suggest that "perhaps a Kurdish party carried out these attacks," or an external actor.
"The Iraqi government has indicators and data, especially regarding this latest attack. I personally possess information regarding the nature and type of the targeting, as well as the trajectory of the attack, but it is not appropriate for me to declare," Badri said.
United Arab Emirates-based operator Dana Gas, a key operator at the field, confirmed the blaze was extinguished without casualties, though production was suspended and the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) Electricity Ministry reported a 2,800-megawatt drop in power generation capacity.
Addressing the broader security landscape and previous strikes on the Kurdistan Region, Badri noted that Iraq faces evolving security challenges despite its prior counterterrorism operations against the Islamic State (ISIS).
"Frankly, one of the most significant challenges facing us is these complex threats," Badri stated, noting that the "level of the threat has differed and changed. Now, the scale of the challenge and the threats are complex, involving drone attacks, the launching of long-range missiles, and cross-border attacks."
"Regarding Kurdistan, it received part of the repercussions of this regional war, and perhaps the presence of interests," he added.
The Kurdistan Region has been hit with more than 1,000 drones and missiles since the outbreak of a 42-day war launched by the United States and Israel against Iran in late February.
Iran and its affiliated armed groups in Iraq claimed responsibility for the strikes, prompting Kurdish officials to request security guarantees from Baghdad.
Telegram channels affiliated with Iraqi pro-Iran armed groups—which have previously been accused of striking Khor Mor—claimed Sunday's attack was carried out using a "suicide drone."
The strike ended a nearly four-month lull in attacks on the facility, which provides the majority of the Kurdistan Region's electricity and household cooking gas.
A KRG official told Rudaw in late July that the field had been hit 12 times, resulting in the deaths of three personnel, while Dana Gas only began gradually restoring production after August, following repeated precautionary suspensions during the regional conflict.
