Rocket Attack Targets US-Occupied Ain al-Assad Airbase in Iraq
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – A rocket attack targeted the United States-occupied Ain al-Assad Airbase in Iraq's al-Anbar province, injuring several American personnel.
"Rockets were launched at Ain al-Assad base," AFP reported, citing a military source regarding the Monday attack.
Some of the projectiles "fell inside the base," the source added.
At least three explosions were heard in the base, likely due to rocket fire and drone strikes, Lebanon’s al-Mayadeen television network reported.
CNN, meanwhile, cited an American official confirming the casualties.
“Initial indications are that several US personnel were injured. Base personnel are conducting a post-attack damage assessment,” the official said.
No person or group has claimed responsibility for the incident so far.
The attack occurred less than a week after an American strike killed four members of Iraq’s anti-terror Popular Mobilization Units (PMU), an umbrella organization of the country's resistance groups.
It also came amid the resistance groups' outrage at the US's unwavering support for the Israeli regime's ongoing genocidal war in Gaza, which has killed more than 39,600 people.
The Iraqi groups have been pressing for an end to the presence of foreign forces in Iraq, more than a decade after a US-led coalition invaded the country based on false claims of possessing weapons of mass destruction.
There are nearly 2,500 American troops in Iraq and some 900 in Syria, which Washington claims are part of a fighting force against Daesh (ISIL or ISIS).
The US has maintained its presence despite the Arab countries and their allies defeating the Takfiri terrorist group in late 2017.
In 2020, the Iraqi parliament voted to expel foreign forces after a US drone strike assassinated Iran's top anti-terror commander General Qassem Soleimani and PMU’s deputy commander Abu Mahdi Al-Muhandis outside Baghdad International Airport.