The US Embassy in Baghdad was attacked by seven mortar shells, but no casualties were reported

WASHINGTON/BAGHDAD (Reuters) – About seven mortar shells fell on the US Embassy compound in Baghdad during an attack early on Friday in what appears to be one of the largest attacks on the US Embassy in Baghdad, a US military official told Reuters. Last memory.

This is the first time that shooting has been fired at the US embassy in more than a year, which appears to have expanded the scope of targets after dozens of attacks on military bases housing US forces in Iraq and Syria since mid-October amid fears of a widening scope of the conflict in Syria. . region.

No group has claimed responsibility, but the previous attack on US forces was carried out by factions allied with Iran and targeted US interests in Syria and Iraq because of Washington’s support for Israel in its war on Gaza.

The American military official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, left the door open to the possibility that more projectiles were fired at the embassy compound, but they did not fall inside.

The official added that the attack caused very minor damage but no casualties.

Explosions were heard near the embassy in the center of the capital at around 4 a.m. (0100 GMT) on Friday. Sirens were activated, calling on people to take shelter.

Official media said that the attack damaged the headquarters of an Iraqi security apparatus.

The US military official added that Ain al-Asad Air Base, which hosts US and other international forces in western Iraq, was also targeted, but the projectiles did not fall on the base.

Sheikh Ali Damoush, a senior official in the Lebanese Hezbollah group, said in his Friday sermon that the attacks launched by Iran-allied groups across the Middle East are aimed at exerting pressure to stop the Israeli attack on the Gaza Strip. He did not specifically refer to Friday’s attack.

A group of Shiite factions allied with Iran and operating under the banner of the Islamic Resistance in Iraq claimed responsibility for dozens of attacks against American forces in Iraq and Syria.

The United States responded with a series of strikes that killed at least 15 militants in Iraq and up to seven in Syria.

“acts of terrorism”

The attacks pose a challenge to Iraqi Prime Minister Muhammad Shiaa al-Sudani, who has pledged to protect foreign missions and take advantage of the fragile stability to focus on the economy and attract foreign investment, including from the United States.

A statement issued by his office said that Al-Sudani directed the security services to pursue the perpetrators, describing them as “outlaw groups that do not in any way represent the will of the Iraqi people.”

He also said that destabilizing Iraq and its reputation and targeting places that Iraq has committed to protecting are acts of terrorism.

A spokesman for the US Embassy called on the Iraqi government to do everything in its power to protect individuals, diplomatic facilities, and coalition forces.

“We repeat that we reserve the right to self-defense and protect our personnel anywhere in the world,” he said.

In addition to its diplomatic staff in Iraq, the United States has about 2,500 soldiers in the country on a mission that it says aims to provide advice and assistance to local forces trying to prevent the return of ISIS, which in 2014 seized large areas of territory in the two countries before taking control. on him. Defeated.

The Iran-aligned Houthis have been firing on Israel and ships in the Red Sea in a campaign they say is aimed at supporting the Palestinians. The American warships dropped many of their projectiles.

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