Suicide drone targets Harir air base: counterterror force

05-01-2024
Karwan Faidhi Dri
Karwan Faidhi Dri @KarwanFaidhiDri
A helicopter flies over Harir air base in Erbil province in May 2021. Photo: Rudaw
A helicopter flies over Harir air base in Erbil province in May 2021. Photo: Rudaw
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ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - A weaponized drone was used to target Harir air base in Erbil province on Friday, Kurdish counterterrorism forces announced. No casualties were reported, according to a local official. A pro-Iran militia group took responsibility for the attack. 

The Directorate General of Counter Terrorism (CTD) stated in a Facebook post that a suicide drone hit Harir air base northeast of Erbil at 4:29 pm.

A local official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, told Rudaw the attack did not inflict any casualties.

The Islamic Resistance in Iraq, a network of shadow Iraqi militia groups affiliated with Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), which has targeted forces of the United States since mid-October, claimed responsibility for the Harir attack.

According to the CTD, international forces of the US-led left Harir base late last year following attacks on the facility.
 
Iran-aligned militia groups, mainly the Islamic Resistance in Iraq, have targeted US interests in Iraq and Syria with rockets and drones over 100 times since October 17, in response to American support for Israel in its war against Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

The attacks in Iraq have mainly targeted Asad air base in western Iraq, Erbil International Airport, and Harir air base.

The storage facility of the air base came under a drone attack in early November by pro-Iran militia groups, causing a fire that took hours to be extinguished. Late last month, two unidentified suicide drones hit a Peshmerga base in Erbil province.

The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) has said it holds the federal Iraqi government responsible for the “cowardly attacks” conducted by government-linked “outlaw” groups.
 

Updated at 7:24 pm

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