A dozen ballistic missiles launched from outside Iraq struck the country's northern Kurdish regional capital Erbil on Sunday, Kurdish officials said, adding there were no casualties.
The attack was launched from Iran, a US official told Reuters. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, did not provide further information.
A US State Department spokesperson called it an “outrageous attack” but said no Americans were hurt and there was no damage to US government facilities in Erbil, AFP reported.
Iraqi state TV quoted the Kurdistan region’s counter-terrorism force as saying 12 missiles launched from outside Iraq hit Erbil. It was not immediately clear where they landed.
US forces stationed at Erbil’s international airport complex have in the past come under fire from rocket and drone attacks that US officials blame on Iran-aligned militia groups, but no such attacks have occurred for several months.
The last time ballistic missiles were directed at US forces was in January 2020 – an Iranian retaliation for the US killing earlier that month of its military commander Qassem Soleimani at Baghdad airport.
No US personnel were killed in the 2020 attack but many suffered head injuries.
Kurdish officials did not immediately say where the missiles struck. A spokesperson for the regional authorities said there were no flight interruptions at Erbil airport.
Residents of Erbil posted videos online showing several large explosions, and some said the blasts shook their homes.
