US National Security Advisor Condemns Iranian Attacks on Kurdish Areas in Iraq

US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan speaks to the media during the daily press briefing in the Brady Press Briefing Room of the White House in Washington, DC, USA, 20 September 2022. (EPA)
US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan speaks to the media during the daily press briefing in the Brady Press Briefing Room of the White House in Washington, DC, USA, 20 September 2022. (EPA)
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US National Security Advisor Condemns Iranian Attacks on Kurdish Areas in Iraq

US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan speaks to the media during the daily press briefing in the Brady Press Briefing Room of the White House in Washington, DC, USA, 20 September 2022. (EPA)
US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan speaks to the media during the daily press briefing in the Brady Press Briefing Room of the White House in Washington, DC, USA, 20 September 2022. (EPA)

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."



Air India Plane with 242 on Board Crashes at India's Ahmedabad Airport

Firefighters work at the site of an airplane that crashed in India's northwestern city of Ahmedabad in Gujarat state, Thursday, June12, 2025. (AP Photo/Ajit Solanki)
Firefighters work at the site of an airplane that crashed in India's northwestern city of Ahmedabad in Gujarat state, Thursday, June12, 2025. (AP Photo/Ajit Solanki)
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Air India Plane with 242 on Board Crashes at India's Ahmedabad Airport

Firefighters work at the site of an airplane that crashed in India's northwestern city of Ahmedabad in Gujarat state, Thursday, June12, 2025. (AP Photo/Ajit Solanki)
Firefighters work at the site of an airplane that crashed in India's northwestern city of Ahmedabad in Gujarat state, Thursday, June12, 2025. (AP Photo/Ajit Solanki)

An Air India plane headed to London with 242 people on board crashed minutes after taking off from India's western city of Ahmedabad on Thursday, the airline and police said, without specifying whether there were any fatalities.

The plane was headed to Gatwick airport in the UK, Air India said, while police officers said it crashed in a civilian area near the airport.

Aviation tracking site Flightradar24 said the plane was a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner, one of the most modern passenger aircraft in service.

"At this moment, we are ascertaining the details and will share further updates," Air India said on X.

The crash occurred when the aircraft was taking off, television channels reported. One channel showed the plane taking off over a residential area and then disappearing from the screen before a huge cloud of fire rising into the sky from beyond the houses, Reuters reported.

Visuals also showed debris on fire, with thick black smoke rising up into the sky near the airport.

They also showed visuals of people being moved in stretchers and being taken away in ambulances.

According to air traffic control at Ahmedabad airport, the aircraft departed at 1.39 p.m. (0809 GMT) from runway 23. It gave a "Mayday" call, signaling an emergency, but thereafter no there was no response from the aircraft.

Flightradar24 also said that it received the last signal from the aircraft seconds after it took off.

"The aircraft involved is a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner with registration VT-ANB," it said.
Boeing did not immediately respond to a request for comment.