A U.S. military official has announced a “self-defense strike” in Iraq targeting a “drone launch site” in Kirkuk, following reports of five members of the “Popular Mobilization Forces” being killed in an airstrike in the province.
The unnamed military official told the French News Agency (AFP) that the strike was a response to an “imminent threat” in Iraq against a “drone launch site.” This comes after security sources informed the agency about the death of five members of the “Popular Mobilization Forces” in an aerial attack in the province of Kirkuk in northern Iraq.
A security official in Kirkuk stated that an “aerial strike,” the executing party of which was not specified, targeted a site of one of the factions of the “Popular Mobilization Forces,” an alliance of factions loyal to Iran, now integrated into official forces.
The U.S. forces have faced approximately 70 attacks since October 17 (32 attacks in Iraq and 34 in Syria), resulting in 62 American military personnel injured. Pentagon officials expressed frustration over the escalating attacks on U.S. forces in Iraq and Syria.
The “Islamic Resistance” in Iraq announced on Sunday that it targeted the U.S. military base in the “Green Village” in Syria and “Ain Al-Asad” in western Iraq with two drones, “directly hitting the targets.” In separate statements, the group indicated that these attacks were in response to “crimes committed by the enemy against our people in Gaza.”
