Two rockets strike Baghdad’s Green Zone
There were two rockets strike in Baghdad’s Green Zone in the morning after midnight on Thursday local time near the American embassy.
As Air raid sirens wailed in the zone that houses the US embassy shortly, Iraqi police said that one rocket had landed about 100 yards from the embassy.
Although there is no report of casualties in the attack, initial reports indicated that the rockets were Katyushas, a Soviet-era ground-based multiple rocket launcher used by multiple factions within Iraq.
READ: No American Casualties in Iran Missiles Attack on US Bases in Iraq
Iran’s proxy forces in Iraq, the Shiite militias known as the Popular Mobilization Forces, usually launch similar rocket attacks on U.S. interests in Iraq in the past.
The US embassy compound in Baghdad is under guard by Iraqi counter-terror forces.
This is coming a day after an Iranian ballistic missile strike on Iraqi bases that house US troops with no American casualties in the attack.
According to reports, Iran deliberately missed the most devastating targets in that attack, with most of its ballistic missiles failing to hit their targets.
Satellite images released show only minor damage to the bases in Ain al-Asad in western Iraq and Erbil International airport in the north.
According to US and European government sources, Iran wanted to avoid escalating the conflict to all-out war.
iDONSABI reported that the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps fired 22 ballistic missiles at the al-Asad airbase and Erbil in the early hours of Wednesday but failed to kill any US or Iraqi soldier.
Speaking on Iranian TV shortly after the missiles were launched, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, described the strikes as ‘a slap’ and said they ‘are not sufficient [for revenge]’ while vowing further action to kick US troops out of the region.
On his part, foreign minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said the attack was now ‘concluded’, praising Iran’s ‘proportionate’ response and adding: ‘We do not seek escalation or war.’
READ: ‘Martyr Soleimani’: Iran Fires Over A Dozen Ballistic Missiles at US Bases in Iraq
According to Iraqi Prime Minister, Adil Abdul-Mahdi, Iran gave him a tip-off about last night’s missile strikes, which gave him time for troops to scramble to bunkers.
His spokesman said he received a call from Tehran warning him an attack was imminent in retaliation for the US killing of its highest-ranking general.
The message was then passed by Iraqi officials to US troops before the attack began.
