A rocket attack struck both in and around Baghdad’s Green Zone, including one that hit the headquarters of Iraq’s National Security Service, near the U.S. Embassy.
Iraqi military and security sources say the rockets were launched from the al-Salam neighborhood Monday, with two landing inside the Green Zone. Four civilian vehicles were damaged in the attack, but no casualties were reported.
The attack comes one week after a similar rocket attack on the Kurdistan Region capital of Erbil, resulting in the deaths of two civilian contractors. Another contractor was injured in a rocket attack at Balad Air Base in Salahaddin on Saturday.
Rocket attacks that target foreign military and diplomatic sites by Iranian-backed militias have become frequent in Iraq since a U.S. attack killed Iranian General Qasem Soleimani.
US READY TO EMBARK ON ‘PROLONGED PATH’ BACK TO IRAN NUCLEAR DEAL
“We are still determining precise attribution, but … we will hold Iran responsible for the actions of its proxies that attack Americans … The rockets fired in recent attacks … are Iranian made and Iranian supplied …” a Department of State spokesperson said. “What we will not do is lash out and risk an escalation that plays into the hands of Iran, and contributes their attempts to destabilize Iraq.”
.@StateDeptSpox says of the attack in Irbil, “We are still determining precise attribution, but… we will hold Iran responsible for the actions of its proxies that attack Americans… The rockets fired in recent attacks… are Iranian made and Iranian supplied…”
— Nick Schifrin (@nickschifrin) February 22, 2021
President Biden has recently moved to put the United States back in the good graces of Iran, signaling his intent to rejoin the nuclear deal that former President Donald Trump scrapped during his maximum pressure campaign against the country.
The Green Zone, an important area of the Iraqi capital that hosts foreign embassies, has been the frequent target of rocket attacks by the Iranian-backed militias.
In October, the militias announced a ceasefire against targeting U.S. facilities contingent upon Washington following through on promises to withdraw troops from the country.
That ceasefire was broken the next month when a November rocket attack on the Green Zone killed a child and injured five other civilians.
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The White House did not immediately respond to the Washington Examiner’s request for comment.
