ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The United States embassy in Iraq on Friday confirmed earlier reports of an attack on an American diplomatic facility in Baghdad days before, reiterating calls on the Iraqi government to safeguard foreign missions in the country.
A statement by the American embassy said that the attack on Tuesday targeted the Baghdad Diplomatic Support Compound, a US diplomatic facility in the Iraqi capital, adding that there were no reported casualties.
“Indications are the attack was initiated by Iran-aligned militia groups, which operate freely in Iraq,” read the statement.
The attack comes as Iran’s newly-elected President Masoud Pezeshkian is on a three-day visit to Iraq.
“We again call on the Government of Iraq, as we have done on many occasions, to protect diplomatic and Coalition partner personnel and facilities,” the statement added, stressing that Washington reserves the right to defend itself and protect its personnel.
Major General Tahseen al-Khafaji, spokesperson for Iraq’s Joint Operations Command, on Wednesday said that an explosion was heard overnight inside Baghdad International Airport in an area occupied by advisors of the international coalition against the Islamic State (ISIS).
US forces in Iraq and Syria over the past year have come under hundreds of rocket and drone strikes by pro-Iran groups, angry over Washington’s support for Israel in its war in Gaza.
Baghdad is engaged in talks with the US-led coalition against the Islamic State (ISIS) to wind down the mission and end the presence of foreign troops on Iraqi soil. The talks were instigated by Iraq’s anger over repeated US airstrikes on its territory.
Sabhan Mullah Jiad, political advisor to the Iraqi prime minister, told Rudaw on Sunday that Baghdad and the coalition have reached an agreement to withdraw the foreign troops from Iraq by the end of 2025.
While Baghdad has maintained that the talks aim to conclude the presence of the coalition forces in the country, Washington has described the step only as a “transition.”
