Rockets land in Iraqi military base, home to US-led coalition troops

Katyusha rockets on Monday night targeted Iraq’s Taji Camp in the north of Baghdad, which houses US-led coalition troops training Iraqi forces.

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – Katyusha rockets on Monday night targeted Iraq’s Taji Camp in the north of Baghdad, which houses US-led coalition troops training Iraqi forces.

The rocket attack comes three days after the similar mortar shellings struck Balad airbase in Salahuddin Province, where US troops are also stationed.

“Three rockets on Monday night landed in the courtyard of the Taji camp without causing casualties,” an Iraqi security source from the camp told Kurdistan 24, without offering further details.

Iraq’s Security Media Cell, an official entity overseeing military data, in a statement confirmed three Katyusha rockets hit the camp, but did not elaborate on the incident.

The camp, which is also an airbase, is located 30 kilometers (18 miles) north of the Iraqi capital.

About 250 US soldiers are stationed in Taji camp as part of the US-led coalition against the Islamic State.

No group had claimed responsibility for the attacks on Taji camp, Balad base, or the recent Baghdad Green Zone mortar attack.

The attacks do, however, come as tensions continue to grow between the US and Iran in the Middle East.

Iran-backed Shia factions in Iraq have distanced themselves from the recent attacks.

Islamic State sleeper cells are known to have been active in areas around Taji, as well as western and northern Iraq,carrying out dozens of attacks on local forces in the past few months.

Editing by Nadia Riva