Four Rockets Hit Baghdad's Green Zone

Iraqi security forces gather at a checkpoint into the Green Zone in Baghdad, Iraq December 10, 2018. REUTERS/Thaier al-Sudani/Files
Iraqi security forces gather at a checkpoint into the Green Zone in Baghdad, Iraq December 10, 2018. REUTERS/Thaier al-Sudani/Files
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Four Rockets Hit Baghdad's Green Zone

Iraqi security forces gather at a checkpoint into the Green Zone in Baghdad, Iraq December 10, 2018. REUTERS/Thaier al-Sudani/Files
Iraqi security forces gather at a checkpoint into the Green Zone in Baghdad, Iraq December 10, 2018. REUTERS/Thaier al-Sudani/Files

Four rockets exploded inside Baghdad's fortified Green Zone near the American embassy, Iraq's military said Thursday, in the third such attack since the US embarked on strategic talks with Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi’s government and the fifth in ten days.

It wasn't immediately clear who was responsible for the attack, which caused no casualties or damage, but the US has blamed Iran-backed militia groups for a recent quick succession of rocket attacks targeting the American presence in Iraq.

The attacks are proving to be a key challenge for the administration of Kadhimi, whose government has promised to take action against militias who attack the US.
Thursday's attack was the third since strategic talks were launched last week.

In a tweet following the attack, Kadhimi said it aimed to “undermine our stability and future” and was “unacceptable.”

“I will not tolerate rogue groups hijacking our homeland to create chaos and find excuses to maintain their narrow interests,” he said.

The first session of the much-anticipated talks between the US and Iraq began last week and laid the agenda for the months ahead, including the issues of the presence of US troops in the country, militia groups acting outside of state authority and Iraq’s dire economic crisis.

During the talks, Iraq committed to “moving ahead and undertaking their obligations" to protect the American presence against militia attacks, said US Assistant Secretary of State David Schenker. But attacks have continued in an apparent defiance of that promise.

A military statement said four rockets struck the Green Zone, which houses government buildings and foreign embassies including the US, just after midnight Thursday. The statement said there were no casualties or material damage. Security forces later found a Katyusha rocket launching platform near Al-Rashid camp south of the capital.

On Monday, three rockets landed after midnight in the vicinity of Baghdad airport, a military statement said. The launch was from the al-Makaseb neighborhood, a police investigation later found.

On Saturday, two rockets hit Camp Taji base, north of Baghdad, without causing casualties. The base is frequented by US troops.

Since October, at least 32 attacks have targeted American interests in Iraq that the US has blamed on Iran-backed factions.



Israeli Settlers Accused of Killing 117 Sheep in West Bank Attack

Palestinians checks wounded sheep after settlers attack a Bedouin community in the Jordan valley, in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, July 18, 2025. REUTERS/Ali Sawafta
Palestinians checks wounded sheep after settlers attack a Bedouin community in the Jordan valley, in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, July 18, 2025. REUTERS/Ali Sawafta
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Israeli Settlers Accused of Killing 117 Sheep in West Bank Attack

Palestinians checks wounded sheep after settlers attack a Bedouin community in the Jordan valley, in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, July 18, 2025. REUTERS/Ali Sawafta
Palestinians checks wounded sheep after settlers attack a Bedouin community in the Jordan valley, in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, July 18, 2025. REUTERS/Ali Sawafta

Palestinian Bedouins accused Israeli settlers on Friday of killing 117 sheep in an overnight attack and stealing hundreds of others in an apparent effort to chase farmers off their land in the occupied West Bank.

The incident comes amid what the United Nations described this week as intensifying attacks by Jewish settlers and security forces against Palestinians in the West Bank and record mass displacements, according to Reuters.

The Israeli army did not respond to a request for comment about the mass slaughter of the animals belonging to the Arab al-Kaabaneh Bedouin community, in the Jordan Valley.

Veterinarians were called in to treat a handful of sheep which had survived the knife and gun attack, some of the animals shaking uncontrollably and in apparent shock.

Salem Salman Mujahed, a resident of Arab al-Kaabaneh, said multiple groups of settlers working in coordination had orchestrated the assault, and accused the army of standing by.

"(Settlers) came near the houses. I asked them what are you doing here then we started fighting with each other," he said. "The army detained me, and they handcuffed me."

He said other groups of settlers then attacked the sheep, which are vital to his community's survival.

Palestinian Minister Moayad Shaaban condemned the incident, calling it part of a broader strategy to displace Palestinians from the region.

"These sheep and animals were slaughtered and shot at," he told Reuters. "They are using these tools to terrify these people to leave these areas, which have been inhabited for dozens of years."

MOVING AWAY

The attack prompted at least one family to begin relocating.

Bedouin Tareq Kaabaneh said he could no longer withstand what he called settler intimidation.

"They were armed, they steal donkeys and sheep. In the night they come here and start shooting toward us," Kaabaneh said.

"I am moving now from here, I want to protect my kids and my sheep, my livelihood ... yesterday I was safe, but I don't know what will happen to me tomorrow," he added.

The United Nations reported this week that mass displacements in the West Bank had reached levels unprecedented since Israel first took military control of the territory nearly six decades ago.

The UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights in Geneva also said there had been 757 settler attacks on Palestinians or their properties since January - a 13% increase from the same period last year.

At least 964 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces and settlers in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, since the start of the war in Gaza in October 2023. Over the same period, 53 Israelis have been killed in attacks by Palestinians or in armed clashes.

The US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee demanded this week a full investigation into the killing of a Palestinian American who was beaten to death by settlers in the West Bank on July 11, describing it as a "criminal and terrorist act".

The United Nations' highest court said last year that Israel's occupation of Palestinian territories, including the West Bank, was illegal and should end as soon as possible.

Israel disputes this, citing security needs as well as historical and biblical ties to the land, which it captured in the 1967 Middle East war. The West Bank is among the territories Palestinians seek for an independent state.