Iraq: We Reject Our Lands Being a Battlefield for Settling Scores

The Iraqi Ministry of Foreign Affairs reaffirmed today, Saturday, Iraq's rejection of its territory being a battleground for settling scores between conflicting countries. It stated that "our country is not the appropriate place to send messages and display power between adversaries, and the government will exert every effort required by moral, national, and constitutional responsibility to protect our land, our cities, and the lives of our civilians and security forces of all kinds." The Ministry of Foreign Affairs summoned the Chargé d'Affaires ad interim at the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad, David Parker, and the head of the American Affairs Department, Diari Ahmed Majid, handed an official note of protest to the Chargé d'Affaires ad interim. This note included "Iraq's rejection and condemnation of the American attack that targeted Iraqi security forces, as well as civilian sites in the areas of Akashat and Al-Qaim, which resulted in casualties and injuries among civilians, in addition to causing damage to residential buildings and citizens' property."