Thursday’s strike killed two people and wounded five,according to two militia officials who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to speak publicly.
One of the officials said al-Saidi was driving into the garage of the headquarters affiliated with the Harakat al-Nujaba militia,along with another militia official,when the car was hit,killing both.
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Heavy security was deployed around the location of the strike on Baghdad’s Palestine Street,and Iraqi war planes could be seen flying overhead. An Associated Press photographer was eventually allowed access to the scene of the strike,where he saw the remains of the charred car.
Since the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas war on October 7,a group of Iranian-backed militias calling itself the Islamic Resistance in Iraq has carried out more than 100 attacks on bases housing US troops in Iraq and Syria.
The group has said the attacks are in retaliation for Washington’s support of Israel in the war against Hamas that has killed more than 20,000 people in Gaza,and that they aim to push US forces out of Iraq.
Thursday’s strike is likely to increase calls for a US departure.
Last week,Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani — who came to power with the backing of Iran-linked political factions but has also attempted to maintain good relations with the US— said that his government is “is proceeding to end the presence of the international coalition forces.”
The strike also comes two days after a suspected Israeli drone strike in the suburbs of Beirut killed Hamas deputy leader Saleh Arouri.
Asked whether Israel had involvement in Thursday’s strike in Baghdad,an Israeli military spokesperson declined to comment.
Signs of escalations of conflict in the Middle East abound.
A Houthi drone boat laden with explosives detonated in the Red Sea on Thursday,the US Navy said,as the Yemen-based group continued its attacks in defiance of international calls to stop.
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The latest attack,which failed to cause any damage or casualties,came one dayafter 12 countries including the United States,Australia,Britain and Japan issued a joint statement cautioning the Houthis of unspecified “consequences” unless it halts its attacks,in what one US official on Wednesday suggested was a final warning.
The Iran-aligned Houthis,who control much of Yemen,have launched wave after wave of exploding drones and missiles at commercial vessels since November 19,trying to inflict a cost in what they says is a protest against Israel’s military operations in Gaza.
The Houthi campaign has been extraordinarily disruptive to international shipping,causing some companies to suspend transits through the Red Sea and instead take the much longer,costlier journey around Africa.
Vice Admiral Brad Cooper,who leads US Naval forces in the Middle East,told reporters on Thursday that the Houthi exploding boat drove out about 80km into the Red Sea and then detonated in dense shipping lanes.
AP
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