An American official indicated today, Thursday, that "the US military carried out a strike in Baghdad against a leader of an armed Iraqi faction, which the United States accuses of being responsible for attacks against US forces in Iraq, resulting in his death and that of another individual." In a statement to Reuters, the official said: "The strike targeted a vehicle in Baghdad," adding: "The attack targeted a leader of the al-Nujaba movement without naming him."
Iraqi police sources and witnesses reported that "a drone fired at least two missiles in eastern Baghdad at a facility used by the Iraqi al-Nujaba movement." They added: "At least two missiles struck a building used by the Iraqi al-Nujaba movement."
The military spokesman for the Prime Minister stated concerning Thursday's strike, in a statement: "The Iraqi armed forces hold the international coalition responsible for this unjust attack against a security entity that operates under the powers granted to it by the Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces." The statement described the movement as "an Iraqi force operating under the mandate of Prime Minister Mohammed Shia’ al-Sudani."
The American official noted: "The strike hit the vehicle with the aim of killing the faction leader, and that was accomplished." The US military has already faced attacks at least 100 times in Iraq and Syria since the onset of the war between Israel and Hamas in October, and these attacks have typically taken the form of a mix of missiles and drones.
The United States has 900 troops in Syria and 2,500 troops in Iraq, in an effort to prevent the rise of the Islamic State organization.
