BAGHDAD: A rocket slammed into the Baghdad airport on Monday, the Iraqi military said, landing near a complex where US soldiers and diplomats are housed.
The airport has been shut to commercial flights since mid-March in an effort to stem the spread of the novel coronavirus, which has infected more than 20,000 in Iraq and cost over 1,100 lives.
“The rocket did not cause casualties or material damage,” the Iraqi military’s statement said.
The attack was not claimed, but Washington has blamed a host of similar incidents on Iran-backed fighters in Iraq.
Since October, nearly three dozen attacks have targeted American interests in Iraq, including a range of military bases, the US embassy in Baghdad and US oil companies.
Some of them have been claimed by mysterious factions that the US believes to be fronts for pro-Tehran armed groups.
The pace of attacks slowed significantly starting in March but picked back up over the last two weeks, coinciding with the launch of strategic talks between Washington and Baghdad.
A total of six rocket attacks since June 8 have targeted the US embassy, the Baghdad airport and a base further north where American and other foreign troops are based.
As part of the new strategic dialogue, Washington has already pledged to continue reducing in-country troop levels, which numbered about 5,200 last year.
But it has demanded Iraq take robust action against those behind the rockets.
Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kadhemi recently gathered his national security council to discuss the attacks, pledging to hold the perpetrators accountable.
Iraqi security forces regularly recover the rudimentary launchers from which the projectiles are fired but have yet to apprehend the perpetrators themselves.
New rocket attack in Baghdad, 6th in two weeks
https://arab.news/y3335
New rocket attack in Baghdad, 6th in two weeks
- Rocket slammed into Baghdad airport, landing near a complex where US soldiers and diplomats are housed
- Since October, nearly three dozen attacks have targeted American interests in Iraq, including a range of military bases, the US embassy in Baghdad and US oil companies
Israel army ‘temporarily suspends’ strike on south Lebanon
- The Israeli military issued a warning earlier on Saturday announcing an imminent strike and warning people in the Yanuh area of south Lebanon to evacuate immediately
JERUSALEM: The Israeli military said it would “temporarily” suspend a strike planned for Saturday that was intended to target what it described as Hezbollah military infrastructure in southern Lebanon.
A November 2024 ceasefire sought to end over a year of fighting between Israel and the Hezbollah militant group, which broke out after the start of the Gaza war in October 2023.
But Israel has repeatedly bombed Lebanon despite the truce, usually saying it is targeting Hezbollah members and infrastructure to stop the group from rearming.
The Israeli military issued a warning earlier on Saturday announcing an imminent strike and warning people in the Yanuh area of south Lebanon to evacuate immediately.
But later Arabic-language spokesman Avichay Adraee said “the strike was temporarily suspended,” adding that the military “continues to monitor the target.”
The suspension came after the Lebanese army “requested access again to the specified site... and to address the breach of the agreement,” he said on X.
Adraee added that the military would “not allow” Hezbollah to “redeploy or rearm.”
The year-old ceasefire monitoring mechanism includes the United Nations, the United States and France.
A Lebanese security source said the army had previously tried to search the building that the Israeli military wanted to target but could not because of objections from residents.
But the source told AFP that the Lebanese army was able to enter and search the building after returning a second time, because residents “felt threatened,” adding that they were evacuated over fears of a strike.
