Erbil Airport resumes flights after deadly rocket attack
ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) said Tuesday that Erbil International Airport resumed normal movement and flights at noon after rockets hit the area the previous night.
The Erbil International Airport has been reopened today at 12:00 pm, and all flights and movements have been resumed normally.
— KRG Dept. of Media & Information (@DMI_KRG) February 16, 2021
Erbil International Airport
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’s airport and a residential area of the city.
A number of flights in and out of Erbil International Airport were temporarily suspended or halted following the assault and roads to the airport were shut down by the Kurdistan Region’s security forces.
However, the KRG Media and Information Department confirmed that flights were operating normally as of Tuesday afternoon.
A group calling itself Saraya Awliya al-Dam (the Avengers of Blood Companies), with alleged ties to Iran, has claimed responsibility for the attack. At least one person was killed and a number of civilians and military contractors were injured.
Read More: Several rockets land outside Erbil International Airport in late night attack
The attack immediately drew widespread condemnation as countries expressed their support to Iraq and the Kurdistan Region.
Editing by Joanne Stocker-Kelly