Iraqi Forces Killed, Injured in US-Led Airstrikes in Kirkuk

TEHRAN (defapress)- The US-led coalition fighter jets attacked the Iraqi troops in Kirkuk province in Northern Iraq, killing and injuring a number of them, sources said.

News ID: 77076

Date: 27 April 2019 - 15:39

The US warplanes struck the Iraqi troops, while they were conducting heliborne operations in Idleb village in al-Riyadh region of Kirkuk, the Arabic-language media outlets reported.

It noted that at least one Iraqi soldier was killed and two others were injured in the US airstrikes.

Meantime, Iraq's Asaeb Ahl al-Haq movement condemned the US-led airstrikes on Iraqi forces, and called for swift exit of the foreign forces from Iraq.

Iraq's joint military operations command also said that a fact-finding committee has been formed to review the US airstrikes against Iraqi troops.

In a relevant development in early March, Iraq's popular resistance forces condemned US sanctions on Harakat Hezbollah al-Nujaba and called for measures to oust American troops from the country.

The US designated Nujaba --- an Islamic movement whose crucial aid to the national army resulted in the defeat of Daesh in Iraq in late 2017 --- a terrorist group and imposed sanctions on it, presstv reported.

The decision has drawn angry reactions from Iraqis. Popular anti-terror groups Kata’ib Hezbollah and Asaib Ahl al-Haq issued statements, calling for resistance against US presence in the region.

Kata’ib Hezbollah's statement said the ban was a response to numerous US defeats in the region. It added that Washington is seeking to weaken the Iraqi resistance against the occupation as it digs its heels in Iraq.

Asa'ib Ahl al-Haq highlighted what it described Washington's hypocrisy in sanctioning the anti-terror group while allying itself with Saudi Arabia and Israel.

"We believe the American criteria for terrorism are not only usually wrong but are actually quite the opposite," it noted.

US troops have reportedly already been deployed to the western Anbar province and eastern city of Kirkuk, prompting Iraq's Popular Mobilization Units (PMU) to step up measures against their presence.

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