Rockets Hit Base Housing US Troops for Second Time - Iraq Security Officials

Sputnik News

08:24 GMT 14.03.2020(updated 12:20 GMT 14.03.2020)

The news comes just few days after two American soldiers and a British serviceman were killed by an attack on the Camp Taji base that resulted in massive strikes against the local Shia militia by the US-led coalition.

At least 33 rockets hit coalition troops north of Baghdad, Iraqi security officials stated on Saturday, in a second attack against the Camp Taji this week. At the moment, there is no official information about damage or victims caused by the assault.

According to a statement, a few rockets hit the coalition quarters while several others fell on a runway used by Iraqi forces. The Iraqi military later stated that several of its troops had been critically injured by the rocket blasts.

The purported 13 March US airstrike against militia positions in Iraq followed a 12 March attack on Camp Taji, which hosts US-led coalition forces in Iraq.

Baghdad also noted that the attack can't be used as a pretext for military operations by foreign powers without approval from the Iraqi authorities.

Wednesday's rocket attack that killed three coalition soldiers came after Washington announced it would be moving air and missile defence systems into Iraq to defend against ballistic missile and drone threats. US Secretary of Defence Mark Esper said that the attack was carried out by Iranian-backed militants, however, Tehran refuted the accusations.

In response, the US carried out airstrikes against an Iraqi Shia paramilitary group Kataib Hezbollah and state-sponsored Popular Mobilisation Forces (PMF), killing at least six. The operation was criticised by the Iraqi authorities, who also summoned the American and British envoys to the foreign ministry after the attack.

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