Fatalities in airstrikes targeting the Popular Mobilization Forces and drone attacks on Erbil
A strike on a PMF headquarters in Kirkuk marks the third attack targeting positions of the coalition that includes Iraqi militias aligned with Iran.
Six members of the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) were killed in Iraq early Tuesday after an airstrike targeted one of their headquarters in Kirkuk province in northern Iraq. The incident comes amid a series of simultaneous strikes and attacks across several Iraqi regions as regional tensions escalate in connection with the ongoing war between the United States and Israel on one side and Iran on the other.
Local Iraqi media outlets, including the website Shafaq News, reported that an unidentified airstrike targeted the headquarters of the PMF’s 40th Brigade northwest of Kirkuk province. The attack killed at least six fighters, while reports indicate that several others remain missing under the rubble as search operations continue at the site.
According to the same sources, this is the third strike targeting PMF positions in Iraq since early Tuesday morning, reflecting a notable escalation in attacks against these armed formations.
In a related development, the Iraqi news outlet Baghdad Today quoted a security source stating that another PMF headquarters in the city of Al-Qaim, located in Anbar province in western Iraq, was also struck by an air raid earlier the same day. The human toll of that attack has not yet been confirmed.
Meanwhile, a security source told Shafaq News that the headquarters of the Fourth Regiment of the PMF’s 30th Brigade in the village of Khazna, east of Nineveh province, was also targeted by an attack whose nature has not yet been determined. Iraqi security agencies have launched an investigation to determine the circumstances of the incident and identify those responsible.
The Popular Mobilization Forces, which include several influential Iraqi Shiite militias aligned with Iran, operate as an official security and military umbrella in Iraq. The organization was established in the summer of 2014 following the “collective jihad” fatwa issued by the highest Shiite religious authority, Ali al-Sistani, which called for volunteers to confront the Islamic State group (ISIS) after it seized large areas of the country at the time.
In parallel with these developments, the Kurdistan Region’s Counter-Terrorism Service announced that international coalition forces intercepted and shot down three explosive-laden drones over the skies of Erbil province, the capital of the autonomous region, early Tuesday.
In a statement, the agency explained that debris from one of the drones fell near the premises of the United Arab Emirates consulate in the city, without causing any casualties.
The UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs had earlier announced that its consulate general in the Kurdistan Region had been targeted by a drone attack that caused material damage but no injuries.
Abu Dhabi called on the Iraqi authorities and the Kurdistan Regional Government to launch a comprehensive investigation into the incident in order to identify those responsible for the attack, hold those involved accountable, and ensure that such assaults are not repeated.
In a separate incident, Iraqi media reported that the former United Nations headquarters in Sulaymaniyah province was also targeted by a drone attack, although no casualties were reported.
Official data indicate that the Kurdistan Region, particularly the city of Erbil, has experienced a recurring wave of drone and missile attacks since the beginning of the regional escalation. According to official authorities, approximately 210 drone attacks have targeted the region during this period, 177 of which were directed at Erbil.
Meanwhile, the group known as the Islamic Resistance in Iraq announced that it had carried out 37 military operations over the past twenty-four hours targeting US bases in Iraq and other locations across the region using rockets and drones.
This military escalation in Iraq coincides with the ongoing war launched by the United States and Israel against Iran since February 28. The conflict has resulted in hundreds of deaths and injuries inside Iran, including several senior security officials.
Tehran has responded to these attacks by launching missiles and drones toward Israel while also targeting what it describes as “American interests” in several Arab countries, including Iraq, Gulf states, and Jordan. In some cases, these attacks have caused casualties and damage to civilian infrastructure. Arab countries affected by these attacks have condemned them and called for de-escalation to prevent the conflict from expanding further across the region.
