US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan on Wednesday condemned Iranian missile and drone strikes on Kurdish areas in Iraq and said Washington will continue to pursue sanctions and other means to disrupt Tehran's "destabilizing" activities.
"Iran cannot deflect blame from its internal problems and the legitimate grievances of its population with attacks across its borders," Sullivan said in a statement, condemning Tehran's "flagrant use of missiles and drones against its neighbors."
An Iranian drone bombing campaign targeting the bases of an Iranian-Kurdish opposition group in northern Iraq on Wednesday killed at least nine people and wounded 32 others, the Kurdish Regional Government’s Health Ministry said.
The strikes took place as demonstrations continued to engulf the country after the death of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old Iranian Kurdish woman who was detained by the Iranian morality police.
Iran’s attacks targeted Koya, some 65 kilometers (35 miles) east of Irbil, said Soran Nuri, a member of the Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan. The group, known by the acronym KDPI, is a leftist armed opposition force banned in Iran.
Iraq’s Foreign Ministry and the Kurdistan Regional Government have condemned the strikes.
On Saturday and Monday, Iran’s Revolutionary Guard unleashed a wave of drone and artillery strikes targeting Kurdish positions.
The US Department of State called the Iranian attacks an "unjustified violation of Iraqi sovereignty and territorial integrity."
"We are also aware of reports of civilian casualties and deplore any loss of life caused by today’s attacks," said spokesperson Ned Price in a statement. "Moreover, we further condemn comments from the government of Iran threatening additional attacks against Iraq."
