The United States prefers cooperation with Iraq to stop the recurring attacks against American troops deployed in Iraq and Syria, said Wednesday the number two of the American State Department, Victoria Nuland, visiting Baghdad.
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Illustrating fears of a regional conflagration fueled by the war in Gaza between Israel and Palestinian Hamas, since mid-October dozens of attacks have targeted American soldiers and the forces of an international anti-jihadist coalition deployed in Iraq and in Syria.
Most of these drone strikes or rocket attacks were claimed by the “Islamic Resistance in Iraq”, a nebula of fighters from several pro-Iran armed groups – who are also affiliated with Hachd al-Chaabi, former paramilitaries integrated into the regular forces.
“These attacks are not just aimed at the United States: we are guests here, we do not have our own facilities. These are attacks against Iraqi installations and they pose a risk to Iraqi sovereignty,” stressed Ms. Nuland, during a meeting with journalists in Baghdad.
She spoke after meeting the Iraqi Prime Minister, Mohamed Chia al-Soudani.
“We had a good conversation today about how to intensify our cooperation to stop these attacks: not just in Iraq, but also from Iraq to interests in Syria, and how we can do that together,” he said. she clarified.
She indicated that her country’s “preference” – shared by the authorities in Baghdad – was for “Iraq and the Iraqi security forces to be capable of managing this security threat”.
In retaliation for attacks against the American presence, the Pentagon has already carried out several strikes against pro-Iran fighters in Iraq, but also in Syria against sites linked to Iran.
In total, Washington has recorded at least 102 attacks in Iraq and Syria since October 17, ten days after the start of the war between Israel and Hamas.
Salvos of rockets targeted the American embassy in Baghdad on December 8, without causing any injuries. The Iraqi authorities quickly announced arrests, ensuring that certain attackers had “links with certain security services”.
Washington has around 2,500 soldiers in Iraq and nearly 900 in Syria fighting the Islamic State (IS) organization with the international anti-jihadist coalition launched in 2014.
