A rocket attack on a base in Iraq wounded multiple US personnel on Monday, officials said, adding to already heightened regional tensions over an expected Iranian counterattack on Israel.
The rocket fire is the latest in a series of attacks targeting Ain al-Assad base in western Iraq, which hosts American troops as well as personnel from the US-led coalition against the Islamic State jihadist group.
“There was a suspected rocket attack today against US and coalition forces” at the base, a US defense spokesperson said. “Initial indications are that several US personnel were injured.”
“Base personnel are conducting a post-attack damage assessment” and updates will be provided as more information becomes available, the spokesperson added.
US President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris were briefed on the attack, the White House said.
“They discussed the steps we are taking to defend our forces and respond to any attack against our personnel in a manner and place of our choosing,” it said in a statement.
An Iraqi military source had earlier said that multiple rockets were fired at the base, with some landing inside it and another hitting a nearby village but not causing damage.
A commander in a pro-Iran armed group told AFP that at least two rockets targeted the base, without saying who had carried out the attack.
Another source in the group and a security source confirmed an attack occurred.
Such attacks were frequent early in the war between Israel and Hamas Palestinian militants in Gaza but since then have largely halted.
The latest rocket fire comes as fears grow of an attack by Iran and its allies on Israel in retaliation for the killing of top Hamas and Hezbollah figures in strikes last week either blamed on or claimed by Israel.
With AFP
