(Baghdad) A base in Syria of the international anti-jihadist coalition was targeted by rockets launched from Iraq, the first attack of its kind against the military alliance led by Washington, attributed to pro-Iran factions after several weeks of calm .
This attack, which did not cause any casualties, comes against the backdrop of war in the Gaza Strip between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas, which has exacerbated tensions between their respective allies in the region.
From the province of Nineveh, in northern Iraq bordering Syria, “outlaw elements targeted with rockets an international coalition base in the heart of Syrian territory (Sunday) around 9 p.m. 50” (2:50 p.m. Eastern time), an Iraqi security forces media unit said in a statement.
A “vast search operation” was launched to find the perpetrators of the shooting, according to the press release, which specifies that the police set fire to a vehicle suspected of being involved in the attack.
An official in Ninawa province, speaking on condition of anonymity, confirmed that “the rocket attacks” had been carried out from an area north of Mosul, in the Zummar district.
In a brief press release sent to AFP, the international coalition indicated for its part that one of its combat planes had “destroyed” a rocket launcher in Iraqi territory “in self-defense” after “a failed rocket attack near of a coalition base in Rmeilane” in northeastern Syria.
“No American personnel were injured,” she said.
Context of tensions
Questioned by AFP, the director of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (OSDH), Rami Abdel Rahmane, reported “several rockets fired from Iraqi territory towards the Kharab al-Jir base”, in Syria, which hosts “American forces”.
These rockets, at least one of which fell within the base compound, according to Mr. Abdel Rahmane, were preceded by the sending of a drone belonging to pro-Iran factions which was shot down.
The OSDH, which has a vast network of sources across Syria at war, pointed the finger at the responsibility of the “Islamic Resistance in Iraq”, a nebula of fighters from pro-Iran armed groups.
It is this same nebula which carried out most of the attacks against American soldiers in the coalition between mid-October and early February in Iraq and Syria.
In its press releases, the group says it is acting in solidarity with the Palestinians, against a backdrop of war in the Gaza Strip, triggered by an unprecedented attack by the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas on Israeli soil on October 7.
A drone attack on January 28 killed three American soldiers in the middle of the Jordanian desert, on the Syrian border. In retaliation for the attacks against its personnel, Washington toughened its tone and carried out several strikes in Iraq, but also in Syria against pro-Iran factions.
Since the beginning of February, however, a relative calm had been observed.
The United States, Israel’s major ally, deploys around 2,500 soldiers in Iraq and nearly 900 in neighboring Syria, committed to the international coalition created in 2014 to fight the jihadist group Islamic State (IS).
Sunday evening’s rocket attacks also come against a backdrop of strong tensions between Israel and Iran.
Early Saturday, an “explosion” on a military base in Iraq left one dead and injured, with security officials calling it a “bombardment” against the former pro-Iran paramilitaries of Hachd al-Chaabi.
The American military Command for the Middle East (Centcom) denied any involvement and, when questioned by AFP, the Israeli army refused any comment.
reference: www.lapresse.ca