16 Jan 2019; MEMO: An Iraqi military base hosting American troops in the north of the country’s capital city of Baghdad was attacked by a missile.
According to a statement by the Iraqi army, the Al-Taji base was targeted by eight Russian-manufactured Katyusha missiles, but it was said to have only hit its surrounding areas.
A local source told Alsumaria that a number of rockets had landed inside the base camp, adding that another missile hit the vicinity of the area. The source pointed out that the attacked had left three dead soldiers.
In a similar context, an Iraqi army officer told Anadolu Agency that the base – located 85 kilometres north of Baghdad – was attacked by five Katyusha rockets.
No groups or countries have claimed responsibility for the attack yet.
Iran recently launched a missile attack on two military bases hosting American soldiers in Iraq’s Anbar and Erbil cities, in retaliation for the death of its commander of Quds Force, Qassem Soleimani, in a US raid at Bagdad airport. The move has heightened fears of a wider Middle East conflict.
The US accused Soleimani of planning to carry out attacks on US diplomats and service members in Iraq and the region, saying the slain leader was responsible for the deaths of hundreds of American and coalition service members.