ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Pro-Tehran Iraqi militia groups warned late on Tuesday that if the US uses Iraqi airspace to carry out “hostile action” against Iran, they will target American interests in the country as they previously have done. The threat followed Iran’s missile attack on Israel earlier in the evening.
Iran fired dozens of missiles at Israel in retaliation for the killing of several senior Tehran allies in the region and an Iranian commander, also blamed on Israel.
US President Joe Biden has ordered his military to aid and defend Israel in the conflict.
The Coordination Committee of the Iraqi Resistance, which is affiliated with the pro-Iran militia groups, said in a statement that if Washington chooses to carry out any “hostile action” against Tehran “all American bases and interests in Iraq and the region will be our target and there is no escape.”
The loose alliance of pro-Tehran groups in recent years has claimed many of the rocket and drone attacks against US interests, resulting in retaliatory strikes on their bases by Washington.
Amid Iran’s missile strikes on Israel, Iraq closed its airspace and suspended all flights following the Iranian attack.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said the barrage of missiles were launched in response to the killing of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh and an IRGC commander - all blamed on Israel.
Israel has only confirmed its involvement in the assassination of Nasrallah.
Daniel Hagari, spokesperson for Israeli defense forces, said in a televised press conference that he was not aware of any casualties from the Iranian missile attacks.
Iran’s permanent mission to the UN said Tehran’s “legitimate response to the terrorist acts of the Zionist regime - which involved targeting Iranian nationals and interests and infringing upon the national sovereignty of the Islamic Republic of Iran - has been duly carried out.”
Iran’s representative warned that if Israel “dares to respond… a subsequent and crushing response will ensue.”
Iraqi militia groups have repeatedly called for the withdrawal of US troops in the country. About 2,500 US troops are deployed to Iraq.
The US and Iraq on Friday announced they had reached an agreement to end the military mission of the global coalition against the Islamic State (ISIS) in Iraq within a year, adding that they will transition the mission to bilateral security partnerships.
Baghdad began pushing for a US withdrawal after American forces carried out deadly airstrikes on Iraqi militias in retaliation for drone and rocket attacks.
The Iraqi interior ministry said on Tuesday that around 12:20 am two Katyusha rockets fell in Baghdad - the first in a garage of the second regiment of the counter-terrorism services and the second in an abandoned yard inside Baghdad International Airport.
Iraq’s Prime Minister Mohammed Shia’ al-Sudani ordered an investigation into what he called a “security breach.”
Alina Romanowski, US ambassador to Iraq, said in a post on X that the attack targeted a US diplomatic facility at the airport, thanking the Iraqi government for its “quick response” to the attack.
“I continue to ask them to protect diplomatic missions and Coalition partner personnel and facilities. These attacks must stop,” she added.
No party has claimed responsibility for the strike.
