The US military conducted retaliatory airstrikes across Iraq, targeting facilities of the Kataib Hezbollah, attempting to destroy weapons allegedly used by Iran-backed militias against coalition forces.
The US Department of Defence said in a statement that Thursday’s strikes were "defensive, proportional, and in direct response" to the threat posed by Iranian-backed Shia militia groups.
NEW: Unverified video footage of effects of US/UK aerial bombardment of Iraq tonight. pic.twitter.com/7NCnkLfZ0B
— Afshin Rattansi (@afshinrattansi) March 12, 2020
Several short clips alleging the Pentagon's responsive strikes surfaced on social media later in the day. The first vague and shaky video shows the alleged moment of a projectile's detonation. An eyewitness who caught the bombardment on video, attempts to flee the dangerous area.
This Video show the U.S air strikes this night against Iranian backed militas in Jurf Sakhar in the north of Hilla city#Iraq pic.twitter.com/lrrHIe2JJg
— Wisam Abulhaija (@WisamAbulhaija) March 12, 2020
Another clip is more dubious. In a night video claiming to depict "U.S air strikes", a sound alleged to be that of low-flying jets is audible. The quality of the video does not clearly indicate the region and the circumstances of the subject matter.
Security forces were deployed in the vicinity of US embassy in Baghdad Green Zone#Iraq 🇮🇶pic.twitter.com/8Cx6VIQwSI
— Aleph 🕯️ א (@no_itsmyturn) March 12, 2020
A third video alleges tightened security around the US embassy in Baghdad's Green Zone, where a majority of government offices are located. There has been no official statement issued by any actor regarding the videos.
