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Rocket barrage targets Ain al-Asad base housing US forces in western Iraq

Saturday, 20 January 2024 4:01 PM [ Last Update: Saturday, 20 January 2024 5:03 PM ]

An aerial picture taken from a helicopter shows the US-run Ain al-Asad air base in the western Anbar desert, Iraq. (Photo by AP)

A massive barrage of rockets has targeted Ain al-Asad air base in Iraq’s western province of Anbar, where US military forces are stationed on alleged training and advisory missions.

The Islamic Resistance in Iraq, an umbrella group of anti-terror fighters, in a statement published on its Telegram channel claimed responsibility for the attack on the Ain al-Asad air base, located about 160 kilometers (100 miles) west of the capital Baghdad, on Saturday evening.

It said the base was targeted by a large number of rockets and the projectiles “directly hit their targets.”

The group said the large-scale rocket attack was carried out in retaliation for US support of Israel’s bloody military campaign in the Gaza Strip.

There were no immediate reports about the extent of damage at the military facility, and possible casualties.

Sabereen News, a Telegram news channel associated with Iraqi anti-terror Popular Mobilization Units, later released video footage showing rockets flying in the sky toward the US-occupied base.

The development comes a day after the Islamic Resistance in Iraq claimed responsibility for intercepting and shooting down an MQ-9 Reaper drone operated by the US military.

Iraq's Islamic Resistance claims downing US Reaper drone

Iraq

It said in a statement that the unmanned aerial vehicle was brought down as it was hovering in the skies over Iraq’s eastern province of Diyala. The aircraft had taken off from Ali Al Salem Air Base in Kuwait, situated 37 kilometers (approximately 23 miles) from the Iraqi border.

Iraqi resistance forces have conducted dozens of strikes on the US-run military installations in both Iraq and Syria amid growing anti-US sentiments in the region over Washington’s support for the Israeli genocidal campaign in Gaza.

Israel launched hostilities in Gaza following a historic operation by the Gaza-based Hamas resistance group against the occupying entity in retaliation for its intensified atrocities against the Palestinian people. More than 100 days into the campaign, the regime has achieved no objectives despite killing more than 24,900 people, mostly women and children.

The United States has supplied Israel with weapons and intelligence support, and blocked UN resolutions calling for a humanitarian ceasefire in the Palestinian territory.

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