Rockets fired at Baghdad's heavily-fortified Green Zone, no casualties
Small rockets landed near the heavily-fortified Green Zone in Baghdad, where government agencies and foreign embassies are located. The rockets were fired early Thursday (Indian time). The news was confirmed by a security source with Sputnik. Small "rockets impacted near Baghdad's International Zone, Jan. 8 at 11:45 p.m (local time). There were no reports of any casualties in the attack. According to media reports, sirens and two explosions were heard from inside the Green Zone. The source of the rockets was, however, not immediately clear.
The attack comes a day after Iran had fired multiple missiles at Iraq airbases housing US troops, resulting in the death of 80 people. The whole of Iraq is on a heightened state of alert as tensions between the US and Iran have dramatically increased over the past few days.
Embassies for the US and several other western countries are located in the Green Zone area of Iraq's capital city. It was initially carved out of central Baghdad by US-led forces after their invasion of Iraq in 2003 and is largely viewed as a safe location, despite frequently being the target of rocket attacks.
This is not the first time the area has been hit by rocket attacks. There have been numerous rocket attacks on the Green Zone and the vicinity in recent months.
Speaking from the White House, US President Donald Trump on Wednesday signaled he would not retaliate militarily for Iran’s missile strikes on Iraqi bases housing US troops. Trump seemed intent on de-escalating the crisis, which spiraled after he authorized the targeted killing last week of Iran’s top general, Qasem Soleimani.
Iran responded overnight with its most direct assault on America since the 1979 seizure of the US Embassy in Tehran, firing more than a dozen missiles at two installations in Iraq. Meanwhile, Pentagon said it believed Iran fired missiles with the intent to cause casualties.
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