UPDATED: Iraqi Forces Intercept Drone Near Baghdad's Green Zone

ERBIL (Kurdistan24) - Iraqi security forces intercepted an unidentified drone near Baghdad's Green Zone on Tuesday, Oct. 27, after three powerful explosions were heard in the capital, according to Iraqi security officials and a Kurdistan24 correspondent.

A source within Iraq's Joint Operations Command told Kurdistan24's correspondent in Baghdad Dilan Barzan that the explosions resulted from a drone attack directed at the US Embassy, which is located inside the Green Zone. The source said Baghdad's air defense system had been activated in response to the approaching aircraft.

Saad Maan, head of Iraq's Security Media Cell, separately confirmed that security forces had intercepted a drone near the Green Zone. He said the aircraft's origin had not been established and that an investigation was underway.

The statements establish that a drone was intercepted near the Green Zone, but they leave important questions unanswered, including who launched it and where it came from. Maan did not identify a group or individual responsible for the incident.

Kurdistan24's correspondent reported that three powerful blasts were heard on Tuesday. The Joint Operations Command source linked the sounds to the attempted drone attack, while Maan attributed the noise heard in the city to the interception itself. Neither account provided further details about the sequence of the explosions.

The Green Zone, where the American diplomatic mission is situated, has faced repeated attacks involving rockets and unmanned aircraft. Its history as a target has made aerial threats in the area a recurring security concern for Iraqi authorities and personnel stationed at the embassy.

Previous attacks against the Green Zone and the US Embassy have frequently been attributed to armed groups amid wider conflicts and tensions in the Middle East. Those earlier incidents, however, do not establish who was behind Tuesday's drone. Iraqi officials have not identified its operator or point of launch.

US forces have deployed a Counter-Rocket, Artillery and Mortar system, commonly known as C-RAM, within the embassy compound to help defend against incoming aerial threats. The system has been activated on earlier occasions when rockets or drones approached the diplomatic facility.

Officials did not specify whether the embassy's C-RAM equipment was used during Tuesday's interception. The Joint Operations Command source referred more broadly to the activation of Baghdad's air defenses, without identifying the equipment involved or explaining precisely how the drone was brought down.

The initial security statements also did not provide information about damage or injuries, and they gave no indication of whether the aircraft reached the embassy compound. The reported target came from the Joint Operations Command source; Maan's explanation referred to an interception near the Green Zone.

Iraq's Security Media Cell said the investigation had begun, leaving the origin of the drone and the circumstances of its flight unresolved. For now, the official account is that security forces intercepted an unidentified unmanned aircraft near the Green Zone after explosions were heard in Baghdad.

This report was updated on Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2026, at 03:16pm.