Iraq condemns US after drone strike in Baghdad

A drone strike in Baghdad killed a senior figure in an Iran-linked militant group that is part of Iraq’s security apparatus and two others on Thursday, drawing sharp criticism from the Iraqi government and allied groups.

In an angry statement, an Iraqi government spokesman blamed the United States for the attack, calling it a “blatant violation of Iraq’s sovereignty and security” and “nothing but a terrorist act.”

The United States did not immediately acknowledge responsibility for the attack, but a Pentagon official confirmed the U.S. strike and said the United States continued to act to protect its forces in Iraq and Syria by addressing the threats they faced.

The attack took place near the logistics headquarters of the group’s 12th brigade, Harakat al-Nujaba, killing a brigade commander, Mushtaq Talib al-Saidi, and two others. The group, closely linked to Iran, was assigned as a global terrorist organization by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 2019.

However, it remains part of Iraq’s Popular Mobilization Forces, a security organization that is in turn part of the government’s broader security forces.

In recent weeks, the U.S. military has responded several times to more than 70 attacks by Iran-backed armed groups in Iraq on U.S. bases and camps in Iraq and Syria. These attacks twice targeted another Iraqi militia linked to Iran, Kataib Hezbollah, and several others.

However, the United States has generally avoided targeting Baghdad in recent years due to its high population density.

Hamas issued a statement condemning the attack on the Nujaba fighters. The Nujaba group has tried to help Hamas in its fight against Israel and took responsibility for a drone strike in November that hit a school in the southern Israeli city of Eilat.

The killing of the three officers prompted calls from Iraqi political parties with ties to Iran for the immediate withdrawal of all US troops from Iraq. There are about 2,500 U.S. troops in Iraq, mostly at bases far from population centers.

Falih Hassan contributed reporting from Baghdad and Erik Schmitt from Washington, DC