Iraq: Rockets hit near Baghdad airport base with US troops

At least three rockets were fired near the Baghdad International Airport, Iraqi military officials said late on Thursday. An Iraqi soldier was wounded, the AFP news agency reported.

The rockets landed near an area that is home to US forces.  

Security forces also said they found and defused unfired rockets from the rooftop of an empty house that was used to launch the rockets, the statement said. 

US officials blamed Iran-backed militias for the attack, although no group initially claimed responsibility.

Previous attacks against US interests

Earlier this month, several rockets had hit an Iraqi air base hosting US forces, injuring two foreign contractors and three Iraqi soldiers. In February, more than a dozen rockets had targeted the military complex inside the airport. 

The attack was the 23rd such action against American interests in Iraq — including troops, the US embassy in Baghdad, and Iraqi supply convoys to foreign forces — since President Joe Biden took office in January this year. Dozens of other strikes took place from the autumn of 2019 under the administration of Donald Trump.

There have been calls from pro-Iran groups for the US to exit Iraq, as it is doing in Afghanistan, or face more attacks and be forced out. Coalition supply convoys in southern Iraq have faced attacks almost daily.

The US recently committed to withdrawing combat forces from Iraq, but didn't set a timeline.

tg/rc (AFP, Reuters)