ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Residents in Erbil woke up to drone attacks that damaged homes on Wednesday, as pro-Iran-aligned armed groups continue to claim responsibility for targeting US positions in the Kurdistan Region’s capital.
“I woke up around 2:45 am to one of the loudest bangs I‘ve ever heard in my life. It was an explosion, and so I quickly jumped up, and I see that all my windows are broken,” said Ibrahim Jawdat. “I go outside, and I see a bunch of people, like 20 to 30 men, soldiers, who were just looking for something. I don’t know what it is. I think they were looking for the drone.”
Drone and missile attacks in the early hours of Wednesday shattered windows in several houses and caused property damage.
“I hear like yelling outside. So, I go outside, and I see just like a bunch of people, later I found out that there was a drone right there, and it was caught in the power lines,” said Ahmed Jawdat, another resident of the damaged house.
Later on Wednesday evening, multiple explosions were again heard across Erbil as air defense systems intercepted drones and missiles in the skies above the Kurdish capital. Footage obtained by Rudaw showed several objects being struck midair. One person was lightly injured in the attacks.
Residents say the incidents have left them dealing with the aftermath of damage to their homes, wih debris from intercepted drones and missiles found in several areas east and north of Erbil.
Hawkar Hadi returned home to find shattered windows and shrapnel fragments lodged in walls and furniture.
“Honestly, it is hard feeling. I mean, it is not about the financial aspect of it, but it is about the fact that you go for a journey and come back to see this disaster. That you are being a victim of a catastrophic incident,” Hadi said. “This war that we have nothing to do with it. We are not responsible for it, we are not a part of it, and we were not the cause of it. We just pay the price for something we didn’t do.”
The attacks come as tensions escalate across the region following US and Israeli strikes on Iran that began on Saturday, with Iran and allied groups launching retaliatory attacks against what they say are US interests in the Middle East. Iraqi pro-Iran armed groups have claimed responsibility for dozens of attacks targeting Erbil, while US-led coalition forces have been working to intercept incoming projectiles.
Erbil Governor Omed Khoshnaw said Tuesday that around 100 drones and missiles have been used in attacks targeting the Kurdistan Region.
