CAIRO, January 4. /TASS/: Additional army and police units have been sent to Baghdad’s so-called "green zone" which came under rocket fire on Saturday evening, the Al-Arabiya TV channel informed citing Iraqi security sources.
According to recent reports, two Katyusha rockets fell near the US embassy in the heavily fortified "green zone" where foreign diplomatic missions and government bodies are located. There has been no information regarding casualties. All roads to the embassy have been blocked in the wake of the attack.
At least four rockets have hit the Balad air base north of Baghdad, which houses US troops. According to Iraqi military sources, there are no casualties or damage.
A mortar attack was also reported in the Jadriyah neighborhood of Baghdad. Five people are said to have been injured in the attack.
The situation in Iraq has escalated after on December 29, the US Air Force hit five targets in relation to Kata'ib Hezbollah paramilitary group in Syria and Iraq. The Pentagon stated that this group is responsible for the attack on an Iraqi base near Kirkuk two days earlier, where a US national was killed. According to the Iraqi media, at least 25 people were killed and 50 were injured in the wake of the US strikes. The actions by the US were met with criticism by the Iraqi government.
The tensions aggravated even further when on Friday, the Pentagon confirmed that a missile strike near the Baghdad airport killed the head of the Quds Force Qasem Soleimani. The operation was carried out at the direction of US President Donald Trump, the statement said. According to the Pentagon, the strike was defensive, since it was aimed at protecting US troops in Iraq and other countries. Washington blamed Soleimani for allegedly approving a rally outside the US Embassy in Baghdad earlier this week.
After Soleimani’s killing, the US announced that it would send over 3,000 additional troops to Iraq as a security measure in light of increasing threat to American forces in the region.
