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Two Drones Reportedly Destroyed Above Iraqi Base Housing US Forces

© AFP 2023 / AHMAD AL-RUBAYEUS soldiers monitor as they train Iraq's 72nd Brigade in a live-fire exercise in Basmaya base, southeast of the Iraqi capital, Baghdad, on January 27, 2016
US soldiers monitor as they train Iraq's 72nd Brigade in a live-fire exercise in Basmaya base, southeast of the Iraqi capital, Baghdad, on January 27, 2016 - Sputnik International, 1920, 06.06.2021
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On Friday, The New York Times cited unnamed sources as saying that over the past few months, an "Iran-backed militia" has used combat drones to attack US-used bases in Iraq.

At least two unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) were downed by the air defence system at Ain al-Asad Air Base in Iraq on Saturday night as the drones tried to attack the base, where American forces are stationed, according to the Iraqi media. 

The Iraqi military, in turn, said the drones had been destroyed after the US air defence system C-RAM was activated at the Ain al-Asad base, located in Iraq's western desert.

The alleged attack comes after The New York Times reported, citing US sources, that an "Iran-backed militia" had used combat drones in recent months to attack US-used bases in Iraq.

© AP Photo / Ali Abdul HassanIn this March 27, 2020 file photo, U.S. soldiers stand guard during the hand over ceremony of Qayyarah Airfield, Iraqi Security Forces, in the south of Mosul, Iraq.
Two Drones Reportedly Destroyed Above Iraqi Base Housing US Forces - Sputnik International, 1920, 06.06.2021
In this March 27, 2020 file photo, U.S. soldiers stand guard during the hand over ceremony of Qayyarah Airfield, Iraqi Security Forces, in the south of Mosul, Iraq.
"The drones are a big deal, one of the most significant threats our troops there face", former Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) officer Michael P. Mulroy said as quoted by the newspaper on Friday.

According to American officials, small, explosive drones have been deployed at least three times in the past two months to crash into targets on Iraqi bases late at night. The attacked bases included those housing CIA and US Special Operations units.

The officials told the NYT that the UAVs used in the attacks had been partially recovered, and that analysis showed they were "produced in Iran or with technology provided by Iran".

© AP Photo / Qassim Abdul-ZahraUS Soldiers stand amid damage at a site of an Iranian bombing at Ain al-Asad Air Base, in Anbar, Iraq, Monday, 13 January 2020. Ain al-Asad Air Base was struck by a barrage of Iranian missiles on Wednesday, in retaliation for the US drone strike that killed a top Iranian commander, General Qassem Soleimani, whose killing raised fears of a wider war in the Middle East.
Two Drones Reportedly Destroyed Above Iraqi Base Housing US Forces - Sputnik International, 1920, 06.06.2021
US Soldiers stand amid damage at a site of an Iranian bombing at Ain al-Asad Air Base, in Anbar, Iraq, Monday, 13 January 2020. Ain al-Asad Air Base was struck by a barrage of Iranian missiles on Wednesday, in retaliation for the US drone strike that killed a top Iranian commander, General Qassem Soleimani, whose killing raised fears of a wider war in the Middle East.

According to the newspaper, Iran is putting pressure on the US in the region in the hope that Washington will scrap economic sanctions against Tehran. The latter were reinstated by then-US President Donald Trump in May 2018 after he announced Washington's unilateral withdrawal from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), also known as the 2015 Iran nuclear deal.

As far as the Ain al-Asad Air Base is concerned, the facility, which was attacked by drones last month, remains the only base in Iraq still hosting troops from the international anti-terrorist coalition.

A worker cleans shattered glass on February 16, 2021 outside a damaged shop following a rocket attack the previous night in Arbil, the capital of the northern Iraqi Kurdish autonomous region - Sputnik International, 1920, 17.02.2021
Pentagon to Present Biden With Retaliation Options After Rocket Attack on US Army Base in Iraq
In January 2020, the base was targeted by Iran with ballistic missiles in retaliation for the US-ordered drone strike that led to the assassination of top Iranian general Qasem Soleimani earlier that month.

Soleimani's killing was followed by the Iraqi Parliament overwhelmingly voting on 5 January 2020 for the withdrawal of foreign troops from Iraq, and also speaking in favour of reviewing the format of cooperation with the US-led international coalition.

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