US troops in Iraq were wounded in a rocket attack on an air base
Several US servicemen were injured in a suspected rocket attack on US and coalition forces at Iraq's Al-Asad Airbase on Monday, according to a defense official.
“We can confirm that there was a suspected rocket attack today against US and Coalition forces at Al-Asad Airbase, Iraq,” the official said. “Initial indications are that several US personnel were injured. Base personnel are conducting a post-attack damage assessment.”
The attack late Monday was similar to earlier ones carried out by Iraqi armed groups backed by Iran, who have repeatedly targeted the site over the last nine months.
According to a US official and Iraqi witnesses near the strike scene, at least two missiles landed inside the base's perimeter. The base had been targeted at least twice in the previous three weeks, and there was also an attack late last month on a small US base in eastern Syria where US special forces collaborate with Syrian Kurdish fighters to combat the Islamic State.
According to initial accounts, at least five individuals were hurt in Monday's incident, including U.S. military and contractors.
The strike comes amid exceptionally high Middle East tensions, with the US bracing for Iranian retaliation against Israel following the killing of Hamas senior leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran last week. Israel has not responded to the death of Haniyeh. Hezbollah in Lebanon has also pledged retribution against Israel following the assassination of one of its top leaders in Beirut less than a day before Haniyeh's death.
While it is unknown who was responsible for the rocket attack on Monday, US authorities have long blamed attacks on troops in Iraq and Syria on Iran-backed militia groups.
According to a White House statement, President Biden and Vice President Kamala D. Harris were briefed on the attack and addressed steps that the government would take "to defend our forces and respond to any attack against our personnel in a manner and place of our choosing."
