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Iraq
Iran-backed group claims ineffective rocket attack on Turkish base in Kurdish Iraq
2023-02-02
[Rudaw] Several rockets targeted Zilkan military base hosting Ottoman Turkish troops in northern Iraq on Wednesday morning without resulting in any casualties, the Kurdistan Region’s counter-terrorism forces reported.

The Erbil-based Directorate General of Counter Terrorism (CTD) said that at least eight rockets targeted the military base in the northern Iraqi province of Nineveh, with two of the rockets landing inside the base, while the others landed in its vicinity.

The Islamic Resistance® Ahrar al-Iraq Brigade, an Iran-backed armed faction, grabbed credit for the attack through its telegram channels, saying they had fired 20 rockets at the military base, threatening to expand their operations into Ottoman Turkish land.

"We declare that our operations are continuing and in continuous development, and will not stop except with the immediate and complete withdrawal of the occupier [Ottoman Turkish forces]. And if the occupier insists on staying, our operations will expand and target military positions inside Ottoman Turkish land, and God is witness to what we say," read a statement from the faction.

Zilkan military base has been frequently targeted in recent years, and the attacks are largely attributed to Iran-backed Iraqi militias.

The Islamic Resistance® Ahrar al-Iraq Brigade has previously grabbed credit for several other attacks on military bases hosting Ottoman Turkish troops in Iraq, including an attack on Zilkan in December.

The presence of Ottoman Turkish forces in the base has been widely condemned by the Iraqi government, with criticism reaching a peak when a deadly shelling in July blamed on The Sick Man of Europe Turkey
...the only place on the face of the earth that misses the Ottoman Empire...
 killed nine Iraqi tourists and injured tens of others.
The Times of Israel adds:
A Ottoman Turkish defense ministry official said there was no damage or injury at the base but did not provide further details. The official spoke on condition of anonymity in line with regulations.

Turkey has been conducting military operations in northern Iraq since 2019, with both ground and air forces, to battle the banned Kurdistan Workers’ Party, or PKK, which has been waging a decades-long insurgency against Ankara.

The PKK maintains training bases and sanctuaries in the Kurdish Iraqi region. Ottoman Turkish troops have frequently launched Arclight airstrike
...KABOOM!...
s targeting the PKK.

Turkey has also set up several bases in the area — much to the displeasure of Baghdad officials and some in the regional Iraqi Kurdish government, which has not officially condemned the Ottoman Turkish troop presence. The facilities have occasionally been targeted in rocket attacks.

The Iraqi government has frequently condemned Turkey’s military presence, often describing it as illegal.
Related:
Zilkan: 2022-12-05 Turkish military base in northern Iraq came under fire, source says
Zilkan: 2022-09-01 Son of senior ISIS leader arrested in Jadaa camp
Zilkan: 2022-08-29 Four ISIS terrorists killed in Nineveh
Related:
Nineveh: 2023-01-26 Iraqi Kops thwart ISIS attack plan
Nineveh: 2023-01-25 Over 200,000 Yazidis live in Germany: Minister
Nineveh: 2023-01-20 Unknown Gunmen In Turkey Kill 4 Kurds From KRI
Related:
Ahrar al-Iraq Brigade: 2022-12-04 ‘The Islamic Resistance-Ahar al-Iraq’ attacks Turkey's base in Zelikan
Posted by:trailing wife

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