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ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - US Ambassador to Iraq Alina Romanowski on Thursday commended Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia’ al-Sudani for arresting people “responsible” for the recent attacks on the American embassy in Baghdad and the Iraqi federal institutions.
A series of rockets targeted the US embassy in Baghdad in the early hours of Friday, causing no casualties. The headquarters of the Iraqi National Security Service in Baghdad, Erbil International Airport, and a civilian building near the airport were also hit with drones and rockets on the same day.
Yehia Rasool, military spokesperson for the prime minister, said in a statement on Thursday that the security forces investigated the incidents and were able to arrest some perpetrators.
“We commend Prime Minister @mohamedshia, the Iraqi Security services, and the judiciary on successfully apprehending a number of those responsible for the terrorist attacks against our Embassy, [National Security Service] NSS and other government buildings,” Romanowski said in a post on X on Thursday.
“The U.S. is committed to close coordination with @IraqiGovt to ensure the perpetrators are brought to justice, U.S. personnel who are present in [the] country at Iraq's invitation are safe, and Iraq's sovereignty and independence are protected,” she added.
Sudani’s military spokesperson said they have identified those responsible for the recent attacks, adding that some are members of the security forces.
“Our security services were able, after intense technical and intelligence efforts, to identify the perpetrators, as preliminary information showed that some of them, unfortunately, are connected to some of the security services, and after the judicial authorities issued investigation and arrest orders against them, the security services arrested a number of them,” he stated.
US troops in Iraq and Syria have come under the target of a series of rocket and drone attacks by pro-Iran militias since mid-October, in retaliation to Washington’s support for Israel in its war on Gaza.
The Islamic Resistance in Iraq, a network of shadow Iraqi militia groups backed by Iran and affiliated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), claimed responsibility for most of the attacks, including the recent ones.
“We have a problem that we cannot hide and we talk about it frankly. It is the problem of weapons outside the scope of state institutions. There are well-known and declared armed factions that have a belief and tenet related to the presence of foreigners inside Iraq,” Sudani told Rudaw during an interview aired on Thursday.
He lamented that the armed groups have led Iraq to be portrayed as a country that is controlled by armed groups rather than a government.
Sudani described the attacks on US bases in Iraq and the Kurdistan Region, as well as Washington’s embassy in Baghdad, as “terrorist attacks.”
“All attacks, including recent attacks on the American embassy and the attack on Erbil airport, are terrorist attacks, and the government and its security services are pursuing the perpetrators, and God willing we will announce who committed the crimes,” he affirmed.
Sudani stated that the presence of pro-Iranian armed factions in Iraq which operate outside state institutions is a “kind of occupation that violates Iraqi sovereignty.”
Pentagon Spokesman Brigadier General Pat Ryder told Rudaw during a press briefing on Tuesday that Washington would not hesitate to take action to ensure the safety of its forces if they are threatened in Iraq and Syria.
“We do very much appreciate the Iraqi Security Forces and the assistance that they have provided when it comes to addressing these threats… But at the end of the day, if our forces are threatened, we will not hesitate to take action to ensure that they remain safe,” he said.
There have been at least 92 attacks targeting US interests in Iraq and Syria since October 17, according to Ryder who stressed that the strikes “have largely been unsuccessful.” The Pentagon said last week that at least 66 US personnel have received “non-serious” injuries as a result of the attacks.
Around 2,500 American troops in Iraq and 900 in Syria are leading an international coalition through Operation Inherent Resolve that has assisted Kurdish, Iraqi, and local Syrian forces in the fight against ISIS which once held swathes of land in Iraq and Syria but was declared territorially defeated in 2019.
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