Rockets target base hosting US troops near Baghdad airport – sources

Private cars and taxis are parked in front of a terminal at the Baghdad International Airport on August 17, 2024. FILE PHOTO/Agence France-Presse

BAGHDAD — Three rockets were fired at a base housing US troops at Baghdad International Airport in Iraq on Tuesday, causing no casualties, two security sources told AFP.

“The Victory Base at Baghdad Airport was targeted with three rockets, two of which were shot down by the base’s special defences, while the third fell near the headquarters of the Counter Terrorism Service Command,” a security source said.

A second security source confirmed the report, noting that there were no casualties and that the rockets did not affect air traffic.

READ: Rockets fired from Iraq at US-led coalition base in Syria

The attack comes as the war in Gaza and Israeli strikes and ground raids in Lebanon threaten to spill over into a regional conflict.

Since the outbreak of war in Gaza on October 7, militant factions have targeted bases in Iraq and Syria housing US troops over Washington’s military support for Israel.

Washington has repeatedly responded with airstrikes on faction headquarters in both countries.

READ: US personnel injured in rocket attack on Iraq base

The United States has about 2,500 troops in Iraq and about 900 in neighbouring Syria as part of the coalition it established in 2014 to fight the Islamic State group. The coalition also includes forces from other countries, including Britain and France.

Armed Iraqi factions loyal to Iran demanded the withdrawal of those troops.

Washington and Baghdad announced Friday that the international coalition would end its decade-long military mission in Iraq within a year.

But the joint statement and US officials did not say how many US troops would remain in Iraq.

After a decline in militant attacks in recent months, rockets were fired in August at the Ain al-Assad base in western Iraq, injuring seven Americans.

And in September, Washington said the US diplomatic complex in Baghdad was attacked by Iran-aligned militias operating in Iraq.