Baghdad blames Israel for strikes on militia air defense depots
Five people were injured in a mid-October explosion at a Baghdad headquarters, an event Iraqi officials now link to targeted hits on Chinese weapons systems.
By Hana Gray ·
Iraqi authorities have concluded that Israel carried out strikes against two storage sites where Iran-backed militias kept shoulder-fired air defense missiles, according to sources cited by the London-based newspaper Asharq Al-Awsat on Saturday. The report states that Tehran supplied the Chinese-made systems and that the attacks occurred last week. One source noted that the militia responsible for the location believed it was difficult to detect, yet the blasts happened shortly after the shipments arrived.
The newspaper did not identify the specific missile model or provide physical evidence for its claims, acknowledging that some details remain unconfirmed. It connected the recent incidents to an explosion on October 17 at a Popular Mobilization Forces base in the East Canal area of Baghdad. The government paramilitary group initially called the blast an accident, but the report indicates it hit a stockpile of old ammunition and injured five people. An anonymous Iraqi official stated that investigators were still working to determine the exact cause, even though more than a week had passed without a public update.
These events follow a similar incident on October 1, when warehouses linked to Iranian-backed groups in and around Baghdad were struck. Sources told Asharq Al-Awsat that the sites held drones intended for suicide attacks and reconnaissance. A security official said Iraqi authorities had not officially classified the nature of the strikes but had gathered enough evidence to attribute them to Israel.
This is not the first time Iraq has pointed to Israel for damage to militia assets. Iranian-backed groups blamed Israeli strikes for attacks in 2019 and a hit in Albukamal, Syria, near the border. In May, The Wall Street Journal reported that Israel operated a secret airstrip in Iraq during its campaign against Iran. Other unconfirmed accounts suggest Israeli fighter jets have flown through Iraqi airspace near the Iranian border with the aid of midair refueling tankers.
The backdrop includes years of Iranian arms transfers to Iraqi militias. These groups have launched over 1,000 drone and missile strikes on the Kurdistan Region since the US and Israel began airstrikes in February. Iran and its allied militias have also conducted 600 attacks across Iraq, some targeting US diplomatic sites. The US withdrew its forces from Iraq on September 30, a deadline agreed upon with Baghdad, and has advised American citizens to avoid travel to the capital.
The newspaper linked the recent strikes to earlier reports of China supplying weapons to Iran, a connection it described as unconfirmed. China's Foreign Ministry denied those supply reports on July 28. In a related development, an Iran-backed militia attacked Saudi Arabia's East-West Pipeline with a drone from Iraq's Maysan province. The crossing has since closed due to US pressure and Iraqi concerns about trafficking.
A source in the Shi'ite Coordination Framework said ruling party leaders have predicted that renewed war between Washington and Tehran would start with the destruction of Iraqi faction capabilities. Most major groups in the Popular Mobilization Forces, except the Badr Organization, are sanctioned by the US as terrorist organizations. The Islamic Resistance in Iraq, a coalition of militias, published a statement claiming that Iraqi airspace is currently being violated.
Source: The Jerusalem Post
