Iran denies involvement in Erbil rocket attack

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – The Iranian Foreign Ministry on Tuesday categorically dismissed reports that Tehran was involved in a rocket attack in Erbil the previous night, reports the semi-official Tasnim News Agency.

The Iranian foreign ministry spokesman categorically rejected allegations ascribing the Monday night's rocket attack on the city of #Erbil in the Iraqi Kurdistan region to Iran. pic.twitter.com/4toqK5foZA

— Iran Foreign Ministry 🇮🇷 (@IRIMFA_EN) February 16, 2021

In a statement released on Tuesday, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Saeed Khatibzadeh rejected “suspicious rumors” linking Iran to Monday’s rocket strike on a US airbase in the Iraqi Kurdistan Region’s capital.

The Islamic Republic strongly dismisses such rumors and roundly condemns the suspicious attempts to attribute the attack to Tehran, he said.

“Iran regards stability and security of Iraq as a key issue for the region and neighbors, and rejects any measure disrupting order and calm in that country,” Khatibzadeh added. The spokesperson called on the Iraqi government to prosecute and punish the perpetrators of the rocket strike.

Around 9:30 p.m. on Monday, the Kurdish capital witnessed a barrage of approximately 14 107 mm rockets, some of which hit the US military compound at Erbil International Airport and a residential area of the city.

A group calling itself Saraya Awliya al-Dam (the Avengers of Blood Companies), with alleged ties to Iran, claimed responsibility for the attack.

The group appeared on the scene after a US drone strike killed Iraq’s top paramilitary leader Abu Mahdi al-Mohandis along with his Iranian comrade Qassim Soleimani in January 2020.

Earlier on Tuesday, the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) Ministry of Interior said the Region’s security forces located the site of the rocket launch and recovered a Kia vehicle used to fire them “on the road between Erbil city and Gwer,” in the west of the capital.

The attack killed one person and injured eight others, according to the ministry, which said the rockets had also caused material damage to civilian and commercial sites, including homes. Coalition spokesperson Colonel Wayne Marotto said a civilian contractor was killed, and that a US service member was among nine people injured at the base.

The Kurdistan Region premier Masrour Barzani immediately condemned the attacks and announced an investigation in cooperation with Baghdad.

Editing by Joanne Stocker-Kelly