Drones and explosives targeted a convoy and two air bases.
US troops in Iraq have been the target of new attacks using drones and explosives, military and security sources reported.
Three attacks took place on Thursday, the sources told Reuters. These incidents are in addition to more than 40 assaults that American and allied troops based in the Middle East have been the target of since the start of the war between Israel and Hamas on October 7.
In addition to two drone attacks on bases, a US-led coalition convoy was hit by an improvised explosive device (IED) blast near the Mosul Dam.
Security sources said the patrol was accompanied by Iraqi counterterrorism forces and that a patrol vehicle was damaged. Three American soldiers were slightly injured but returned to duty, the official added.
Drone attacks targeted US and coalition forces at Ain al-Asad Air Base west of Baghdad and al-Harir Air Base in Erbil. The two drones were destroyed before reaching their target, according to the sources.
A statement from Iraqi Kurdistan’s counterterrorism service added that the al-Harir attack caused a fire at one of its fuel depots, but added that U.S.-led coalition forces evacuated the air base on October 20.
Since the start of the war between Israel and Hamas, American and coalition troops have been attacked at least 40 times in Iraq and Syria. So far, 56 US service members have been injured in these attacks, although all have returned to duty, according to the Pentagon.
The United States has accused Iran of “actively facilitating” rocket and drone attacks by Iranian-backed proxy groups against its forces in Iraq and Syria.
Tehran denies the claims, saying the groups participating in the attacks did so of their own accord.
Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian said Tehran “does not give orders to resistance groups in the region, nor prevent them from making decisions in their own country based on their own interests.”
On Friday, he said it was “inevitable” that the war in Gaza would spread.
Groups in Iraq that have targeted U.S. military assets say the attacks will continue as long as the United States supports Israel in its war on Gaza.
The United States has occasionally retaliated against Iranian-backed forces in the region, including launching an Oct. 26 strike in Syria.
US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said in a statement that Washington “does not seek conflict and has neither the intention nor the desire to engage in further hostilities.”
But he added that “these Iranian-backed attacks on US forces are unacceptable and must stop.”
