Explosive Drone Hits Gas Field in Northern Iraq

Emergency teams at a building damaged after missiles target Erbil, Iraq, January 16, 2024 (AFP)
Emergency teams at a building damaged after missiles target Erbil, Iraq, January 16, 2024 (AFP)
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Explosive Drone Hits Gas Field in Northern Iraq

Emergency teams at a building damaged after missiles target Erbil, Iraq, January 16, 2024 (AFP)
Emergency teams at a building damaged after missiles target Erbil, Iraq, January 16, 2024 (AFP)

An explosive drone struck Khor Mor gas field in the Sulaimaniya region of northern Iraq on Thursday, two sources told Reuters, saying the explosion had caused limited damage but no one had been injured.

Earlier, the Kurdish Rudaw media network said the counterterrorism apparatuses in the Kurdistan Region shot down and destroyed a suicide drone targeting the US-led coalition forces near Erbil International Airport.

The media network did not immediately provide details but reported that a loud sound was heard in the vicinity of Erbil.

Last Wednesday, the Iraqi Al-Nujaba TV said a drone targeted US forces at the Erbil airport base.

Since Israel's war in Gaza began in October, Iraq has witnessed near-daily drone and rocket attacks by Iraqi armed groups mostly on bases housing troops belonging to the US-led military coalition in response to Washington’s support for Israel.

Also, in mid-January, Iran fired 11 ballistic missiles at civilian targets in Erbil, killing a prominent Iraqi businessman and two members of his family and wounding several others. It claimed the missiles targeted spying facilities run by the Israeli Mossad.



Arab League Warns Against ‘Strife’ in Syria

The Arab League headquarters in Cairo. Asharq Al-Awsat
The Arab League headquarters in Cairo. Asharq Al-Awsat
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Arab League Warns Against ‘Strife’ in Syria

The Arab League headquarters in Cairo. Asharq Al-Awsat
The Arab League headquarters in Cairo. Asharq Al-Awsat

The Arab League has warned against “strife” in Syria, saying it was “following with concern the events taking place in several Syrian cities and areas with the aim of igniting the sparks of conflict.”

It said Thursday that it “rejects the Iranian statements aimed at fueling strife among the Syrian people,” according to a statement from the secretariat.

It did not specify which statements it was referring to.

Syria's newly appointed foreign minister, Asaad Hassan al-Shibani, said on Tuesday that Iran must respect the will of the Syrian people and Syria's sovereignty and security.

"We warn them against spreading chaos in Syria and we hold them accountable for the repercussions of the latest remarks," he said.

Tehran’s foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei lashed out on Thursday against unspecified media reports on Iran “interfering in Syria’s internal affairs” as “baseless.”

Iran was committed to “supporting the territorial integrity and national unity of Syria and the formation of an inclusive political system,” he said in a statement.

On Sunday, Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei called on Syrian youth to "stand with firm determination against those who have orchestrated and brought about this insecurity.”

Khamenei forecast "that a strong and honorable group will also emerge in Syria because today Syrian youth have nothing to lose,” calling the country unsafe.