Iraqi protesters attempt to storm US Embassy in Baghdad in retaliation for airstrikes
ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – Protesters in Iraq stormed the US Embassy in Baghdad on Tuesday and attempted to break into the building in retaliation for a US strike against Iran-backed militias in Iraq, sources in the area told Kurdistan 24.
Footage from the scene showed thousands gathered around the US Embassy, waving Iraqi and Hashd al-Shaabi flags and chanting “Death to America!” slogans in opposition to America’s presence in the country.
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Sources in the area reported that the crowd had also burned an American flag.
The incident comes after the US launched five strikes on Sunday against facilities belonging to the Iraqi militia, Kata’ib Hizbollah, as it charged that the Iranian-backed militia was behind a lethal attack on K-1, an Iraqi military base outside Kirkuk.
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In what appeared to be a retaliatory strike, an Iraqi Interior Ministry official said four Katyusha rockets hit the al-Taji military base – located about 30 kilometers (18 miles) from the Iraqi capital of Baghdad – which houses American troops, hours after the US strikes.
The developments occur amid ongoing anti-government protests in central and southern parts of Iraq that have left over 500 people dead and scores more injured, leading to the resignation of Prime Minister Adil Abdul Mahdi.
On Monday, the Iraqi government condemned the US operation, describing it as “an unacceptable vicious assault that will have dangerous consequences.”
Similarly, influential Iraqi Shia cleric Muqtada al-Sadr warned against the consequences of throwing Iraq into the escalating conflict between the United States and Iran, which stems from Tehran’s continued violations of the 2015 nuclear accord.