Iraq: String of attacks on Western targets
A rocket assault on an airbase in Iraq's Kurdistan region is the latest in a series of attacks targeting Western military or diplomatic installations in the country since late 2019.
A US-led international coalition has been in Iraq since 2014 to help local forces fight the Islamic State jihadist group.
Here is a summary of the attacks.
- Rocket attacks -
Since late October 2019, repeated mortar and rocket attacks target American interests in Iraq.
No one claims responsibility, but Washington blames pro-Iran factions.
On December 27, 2019, a US civilian contractor is killed when around 30 rockets are fired at the K1 Iraqi military base in Kirkuk, an oil-rich region north of Baghdad.
Several US service members and Iraqi personnel are also wounded in the attack.
On December 29, the US bombs the headquarters of Kataeb Hezbollah, a hardline Iraqi military faction close to Iran, killing at least 25 fighters.
- US embassy stormed -
On December 31, pro-Iran protesters storm the US embassy compound in Baghdad, expressing fury over US strikes.
A mob light fires and chants "Death to America!", before withdrawing a day later.
- US strike kills commander -
On January 3, 2020, a US drone strike near Baghdad's airport kills Iran's Qasem Soleimani, the commander of the Quds force, the foreign operations arm of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
Also killed is the Iraqi deputy chief of Hashed al-Shaabi, a network of armed groups incorporated into the Iraqi state, Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis.
The Pentagon says President Donald Trump ordered the killings after the siege of the US embassy.
In retaliation, Iran launches a volley of missiles on January 8 at Iraqi bases housing US and other coalition troops.
- New escalation -
On March 11, 2020, a rocket kills two American soldiers and a British soldier, the deadliest rocket attack in years on an Iraqi military base hosting foreign troops.
A volley of 18 rockets hits the Taji air base north of Baghdad.
Some 26 pro-Iranian paramilitaries are then killed in air strikes at the Syrian border.
A fresh spate of rockets target the same Taji base three days later.
That attack came after US air strikes on arms depots it said were used by hardline members of the Hashed al-Shaabi.
On March 17, several rockets are fired at the Besmaya base south of Baghdad, which hosts Spanish forces linked to the coalition.
On September 28, three children and two women from the same Iraqi family are killed when a rocket targeting Baghdad airport -- where US soldiers are stationed -- lands on their home.
- US embassy targeted again -
On December 20, 2020, a volley of rockets explodes near the US embassy in Baghdad, the third attack since a truce announced in October by pro-Iran hardline groups.
At least three rockets land near the US embassy in the high-security Green Zone, while two others hit separate residential neighbourhoods.
- Attack on airbase -
On February 15, 2021, a volley of rockets targeting an airbase in Arbil in Iraq's Kurdistan region kill a foreign contractor for the US military and wounds at least 14 other people.
At least three rockets were fired in the direction of the city's airport, where foreign troops are based, according to the coalition.
The attack is claimed by a shadowy group calling itself "Awliyaa al-Dam" or "Guardians of Blood".
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Iraq rocket attack kills foreigner, wounds several US contractors
Arbil, Iraq (AFP) Feb 16, 2021
A volley of rockets targeting an airbase in Iraq's Kurdistan region killed a foreign civilian contractor and wounded five others, the US-led coalition said. The attack late Monday was the first time in nearly two months that Western military or diplomatic installations have been targeted in Iraq, after a string of similar incidents. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken called for an investigation and promised to "hold accountable those responsible". "Several American contractors" appeared to ... read more
