Reports in the Kurdistan region of northern Iraq said that there was an attack on Erbil International Airport on Tuesday evening. According to Rudaw the attack was a rocket attack. It comes a day after a drone attack was reported in Baghdad against US facilities near the US embassy. At least three drones targeted the Union III site near the embassy.
The Erbil attack was reported to include numerous rockets. In the past Erbil has been attacked by drones in late June and in April when a drone targeted a CIA hangar. The US has forces at Erbil airport. Pro-Iranian militias have increasingly targeted US forces in Iraq in attacks that take place weekly and now appear to have taken place daily since July 4. This included the two attacks on July 5, one of which was on Asad base, and then the attacks that unfolded the night of July 5 and now on the night of July 6 in Erbil.
US President Joe Biden ordered airstrikes on pro-Iran militias in Syria in late June in response to the drone attack near Erbil that struck near a site for the US consulate. The militias vowed to respond and fired a salvo at US forces in Syria near Omar oil field. Rumors said another attack near Omar unfolded on July 4 but the US-led Coalition denied that attack. The Erbil attack would therefore be the third attack in 36 hours. This is a major escalation by pro-Iran groups that seek to eject the US from Iraq. There have been around 50 attacks since the beginning of the year, increasingly involving drone.
The Kurdistan region is under threat from 122mm rockets based in Nineveh and has also been targeted by 107mm rockets smuggled closer to Erbil by militias. Drones have also been used because pro-Iran militias have difficulty penetrating the wall of security that the autonomous Kurdish region musters. However Iran now has the US in its sights and has apparently ordered its militias, likely via the IRGC, to begin a full-court press against the US. This militias include Kataib Hezbollah and Kataib Sayyid al-Shuhada. The attack reportedly involved both rockets and missiles. Sources said at least 20 rockets and 3 drones were used. This would make it the largest attack so far on US forces and on Erbil. Iran has used cruise missiles and drone combinations in the past, attacking Saudi Arabia’s Abqaiq in 2019 with missiles and drones. Footage in Erbil showed a fire and sirens as the attack unfolded. The airport was said to be closed due to the attack. Kataib Hezbollah had warned in recent days it had underground hidden rockets it could use. The major attack will force the Biden administration to consider a retaliation. It is believed that pro-Iran militias have large stores of rockets and drones as well as ballistic missiles in Iraq and Syria. Update: The US Department of Defense downplayed the attack. The 20 rockets and 3 drones report was likely an exaggeration. “We are aware of reporting of a UAS incident in the vicinity of Erbil, Iraq. At this time, initial reports indicate no structural damage, injuries or casualties,” a Department of Defense spokesperson said.
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