Iraq.. American soldiers were injured in a missile attack targeting the Ain al-Assad base

Iraqi security sources in Anbar Governorate, western Iraq, reported on Monday evening that at least two missiles were fired towards the Ain al-Asad base, which houses hundreds of American soldiers working within the international coalition forces led by the United States in Iraq, without revealing what resulted from the bombing, which is the third of Its type since the seventeenth of last July. Later, Reuters quoted three American officials as saying that several American soldiers were injured in the attack.

For several days, Iraqi security forces have continued to deploy over wide distances in the vicinity of Ain al-Asad base to prevent any possible targeting of the military air base located in the town of “Al-Baghdadi,” 90 kilometers west of the city of Ramadi, the center of Anbar Governorate.

A police official said, in a phone call with Al-Araby Al-Jadeed, that the bombing was carried out with two missiles, and smoke rose after the attack from the direction of the Ain Al-Assad base, stressing that they are not allowed to enter the part designated for coalition forces in the base and are awaiting any details received from the American side. .

The same official added that the security forces seized a Kia truck on which a locally-made rocket launcher was installed to target the Ain al-Assad base from the southwestern axis of the industrial neighborhood adjacent to Haditha city. He also revealed that a number of missiles installed on the launcher failed to launch. There was a remote control device for the missile launching mechanism, and no suspect in the attack has been arrested yet.”

The Iraqi military or governmental authorities had not issued any comment at the time of writing the report, but platforms linked to Iraqi armed factions published a picture of a launching pad on a Kia cargo vehicle, saying it was for a missile launch operation.

This is the third attack of its kind against American military facilities in Iraq in less than a month, despite the efforts made by the government of Iraqi Prime Minister Muhammad Shia al-Sudani to maintain a state of calm between the armed factions loyal to Tehran and the American forces operating in Iraq.

Last Thursday, the “Ain al-Assad” base, west of Anbar Governorate, which includes hundreds of American soldiers within the international coalition forces led by Washington, was subjected to a missile attack that did not result in losses, after a previous targeting of it on the seventeenth of last month by two bomb-laden drones. The two attacks did not result in any damage or casualties to the base, and no armed faction has claimed responsibility for those attacks so far.

Governmental, political and popular circles in Iraq are anticipating a possible escalation by armed factions close to Iran against American targets and interests in Iraq and the region, after the United States launched an air strike on the evening of July 30, targeting the Iraqi “Hezbollah Brigades” in the Jurf al-Sakhar area, south of the capital. Baghdad.

"Ain al-Assad", which includes the largest number of American forces in Iraq, has been subjected to numerous missile attacks for years, and they increased after the Palestinian resistance announced the start of Operation "Al-Aqsa Flood", as part of the Iraqi response to the massacres committed by the Israeli entity against civilians in the Gaza Strip since The seventh of last October.

Since October 7, the "Islamic Resistance" group, which includes the "Al-Nujaba", "Hezbollah Brigades", "Master of Martyrs", "Imam Ali", "Al-Awfiya" factions, and other factions known to be linked to or supported by Iran, has carried out... More than 200 missile and drone launches at the American bases of Ain al-Assad and Harir in Anbar and Erbil, western and northern Iraq, in addition to similar attacks on American bases in eastern Syria, within Al-Hasakah and Deir ez-Zor.

There are about 2,500 American military personnel in Iraq as part of the international coalition against terrorism led by Washington since September 2014.

The soldiers are distributed among three main sites in Iraq: Ain al-Asad base in Anbar, Harir base in Erbil, and Camp Victoria, adjacent to Baghdad International Airport. Not all of these forces are American, as there are also French, Australian, and British forces working within the coalition forces, and others within the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) mission in Iraq.

(The New Arab)