Explosions Reported at PMF Sites in Baghdad and Western Iraq as Authorities Condemn Attacks

ERBIL (Kurdistan24) - Several headquarters and positions belonging to Iraq’s Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) were targeted in a series of attacks across Baghdad and other parts of the country in the past few hours, according to information from Kurdistan24 correspondents and Iraqi media reports, while the Iraqi Joint Operations Command condemned the incidents and warned against military activity in residential areas.

Explosions were reported in multiple parts of the Iraqi capital as strikes targeted facilities associated with PMF units. According to information obtained by Kurdistan24 correspondents in Baghdad, one of the locations struck was the headquarters of the PMF’s 40th Brigade in the Karada district of the city.

Fighters affiliated with the armed group Ansar al-Awfiya were present at the headquarters at the time of the attack, the correspondents reported. Iraqi media reported that Abu Rahif Qasim, also known as Abu Ali, was killed during the strike. He was identified as the commander responsible for the missile system within the Badr Brigade.

Kurdistan24 correspondents reported that additional explosions were heard across several districts of Baghdad. Powerful blasts were reported in Rasafa and Nahrawan, near the Zaytun channel, as well as in areas close to the Green Zone, the vicinity of the United States Embassy, and Sadr City.

Witness accounts and information gathered by correspondents indicated that smoke was seen rising over several of the affected areas following the explosions.

In southern Baghdad, a Toyota Prado vehicle was also targeted in what sources described as a separate strike. According to available information, an armed group leader was believed to have been inside the vehicle at the time of the attack. No official confirmation regarding the identity of the individual or the outcome of that strike had been issued at the time of reporting.

The series of attacks extended beyond the capital. In northern Iraq, Kurdistan24’s correspondent in Mosul reported that the headquarters of the PMF’s 30th Brigade, known as the Sayyid al-Shuhada headquarters, was also targeted.

According to the correspondent, the facility was struck by two missiles. Video footage circulating from the area showed damage consistent with a missile strike, though official confirmation regarding casualties or the extent of material losses had not been released.

In western Iraq, another PMF position was reportedly targeted. Kurdistan24’s correspondent in Anbar province said that a PMF base in the district of al-Qaim, located near the Iraq–Syria border, was struck during the same period of attacks.

Authorities had not issued official figures regarding casualties or damage at that location at the time of publication.

Amid the reports of multiple strikes, the Iraqi Joint Operations Command issued a statement condemning the developments and warning about the risks posed by military operations conducted in densely populated areas.

The Security Media Cell of the Joint Operations Command described the attacks as a “dangerous and unprecedented escalation,” according to a statement released following the incidents.

The statement said that targeting residential areas constitutes an international crime and violates international norms protecting civilians during armed conflict.

“Targeting civilian areas is a flagrant and explicit violation of all human values and is completely contrary to the international treaties that protect civilians during conflicts,” the statement said.

The Security Media Cell added that any justification offered for carrying out military operations in residential neighborhoods was “legally and ethically void and baseless.”

The Joint Operations Command also warned that conducting attacks within crowded urban areas risks placing civilians directly in harm’s way.

Turning citizens’ homes and residential streets into sites of military confrontation, the statement said, represents a crime intended to “terrorize innocent people and break their will.”

The statement further emphasized that attacks carried out against individuals inside their homes violate fundamental human rights and can be classified internationally among major crimes.

Authorities did not attribute responsibility for the strikes in the statement, and no group publicly claimed responsibility for the attacks in the immediate aftermath.

The incidents occurred amid heightened tensions involving armed factions in Iraq and foreign military forces operating in the region.

Following the outbreak of the Gaza war in October 2023 and the escalation of hostilities involving Iran late last month, tensions between armed groups in Iraq and U.S. forces have intensified.

Armed factions operating under the name “Islamic Resistance in Iraq” have carried out numerous drone and missile attacks targeting U.S. military bases in Iraq and neighboring Syria, according to previous reports.

Those groups have also launched several attacks toward Israel during the same period.

In response, U.S. forces have conducted strikes targeting the headquarters and leaders of PMF units and affiliated armed groups in several Iraqi provinces, including Baghdad, Babel, Anbar, and Kirkuk.

Authorities had not released official casualty figures or full damage assessments from the latest attacks at the time of publication.

Iraqi officials said investigations and monitoring efforts were ongoing following the series of strikes.