Five rockets were reportedly fired from Iraq’s town of Zummar towards a U.S. military base in northeastern Syria on Sunday, according to two Iraqi security sources and a U.S. official.
This attack marks the first incident targeting U.S. forces since early February when Iranian-backed groups in Iraq had paused their attacks against U.S. troops.
The rocket attack occurred shortly after Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani returned from a visit to the United States, where he met with President Joe Biden at the White House.
A post on a Telegram group linked to Kataib Hezbollah claimed that armed factions in Iraq had decided to resume attacks following a near-three month hiatus, due to perceived lack of progress in discussions to end the U.S.-led military coalition’s presence in the country.
According to a U.S. official who spoke anonymously, more than five rockets were fired towards troops at a coalition base in Rumalyn, Syria, but no U.S. personnel were injured.
The official described the incident as a “failed rocket attack,” indicating uncertainty about whether the rockets missed their target or were intercepted before impact.
In response to the attack, an aircraft from the U.S.-led coalition reportedly conducted a strike against the launcher believed to be responsible.
Iraqi security sources and a senior army officer indicated that a small truck fitted with a rocket launcher was discovered in Zummar, near the Syrian border, and was subsequently destroyed in an airstrike.
Iraqi forces launched a search and inspection operation targeting the perpetrators near the Syrian border, with a commitment to apprehend those responsible, according to a statement from the Iraqi Security Media Cell, which disseminates security-related information.
The incident follows a significant explosion at an Iraqi military base early on Saturday, resulting in the death of a member of an Iraqi security force that includes Iran-backed groups.
While the force commander attributed the incident to an attack, the Iraqi army stated that an investigation was underway and clarified that no warplanes were active in the area at the time.
