Iraq: Twelve rockets hit the city of Arbil in Iraqi Kurdistan

LAST UPDATE: 10:46

The bomber struck shortly after noon in front of a rally in the Kurdish region of Arbil in northern Iraq, a U.S. official told Reuters.

Twelve ballistic missiles hit Arbil today at 1 p.m. (local time) targeting the new building of the US consulate and the neighboring residential area, but caused only material damage and the injury of a civilian, the Kurdish Ministry of Interior announced today.

A spokesman for Iraqi state-based Iranian state television said the missiles were aimed at “secret Israeli bases”.

There is no official responsibility or more information. A State Department spokesman spoke of a “horrific attack” but said no Americans had been injured and no damage had been done to US government facilities in Arbil.

U.S. forces stationed at the Arbil International Airport complex have been attacked in the past by rockets and unmanned aircraft, which U.S. officials have blamed on militias allied with Iraq. However, such attacks have not taken place for several months.

The last time US forces targeted ballistic missiles was in January 2020 – Iranian retaliation for the US-led assassination earlier in the month of military commander Qassem Soleimani at Baghdad airport.

No US personnel were killed in the 2020 attack, but many were injured.

Kurdish officials did not immediately say where the rockets hit. A spokesman for the regional authorities said flights to Arbil airport had not been suspended.

Arbil residents posted videos on social media depicting large explosions, and some said their homes were shaken by the blasts. Reuters notes that it was not able to verify these videos from an independent source.