Rockets hit Iraqi base housing US forces

At least three rockets landed on Monday on the Ain al-Asad air base, which hosts US and other international forces in western Iraq, but caused no casualties, a coalition spokesman said.

US Army Colonel Wayne Marotto, spokesman for the US-led international military coalition, tweeted that initial reports suggested the attack took place at 2:45pm. He said the damage was being assessed.

The United States accuses Iran-backed militia groups of launching regular rocket attacks against its troops in Iraq. There was no immediate claim of responsibility for Monday's attack.

US interests in Iraq have come under repeated attack since October 2019, including with rockets, with Washington routinely blaming them on Iran-backed factions.

Since the beginning of the year, a total of 43 attacks have targeted the US embassy in Baghdad, Iraqi bases housing US troops or Iraqi convoys carrying logistical support.

Pro-Iran groups in Iraq are campaigning for the departure of the remaining 2,500 US troops deployed in the country as part of an international coalition to fight the Islamic State group. The Iraqi government declared that fight won in late 2017.

On 10 June the US Department of State's Rewards for Justice programme urged Iraqis with any information concerning anti-American attacks to come forward.