Iran and its militias struck northern Iraq, killing five Peshmerga and wounding 19, as attacks on the Kurdistan Region escalate amid the wider Middle East conflict.
Five Kurdistan Regional Government Peshmerga were killed early on Tuesday when missiles targeted their base. The missiles were likely fired by Iran or Iranian proxies in Iraq.
Iran has a network of Iranian-backed militias in Iraq. These groups nominally come under government control as paramilitaries of the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF). They are also called Hashd al-Sha’abi.
Iran and its proxies have been attacking the Kurdistan Region since the US and Israeli strikes on Iran began on February 28.
There have been more than 300 drone and missile attacks targeting the autonomous Kurdistan region in northern Iraq. The Peshmerga are the official military forces of the Kurdistan Regional Government.
Rudaw Media Network in the Kurdistan Region noted that “at least five Kurdistan Region Peshmerga fighters were killed and over 19 others wounded in missile strikes targeting a base in Erbil province early Tuesday.”
The report said that “officials in Erbil’s Soran administration told Rudaw that Division 7 of the Peshmerga forces was hit, killing five fighters and injuring nearly 19 others.”
Peshmerga base hit in Erbil, several wounded
There were also a number of wounded. They were taken to hospitals in Erbil, the capital of the Kurdistan Region. “In a statement, the Peshmerga Command Area One said the headquarters of Division 7 was struck twice, first at 1:50 am with five missiles, causing no casualties, and again at 2:50 am with one missile, without specifying casualties,” Rudaw noted.
The report noted that last week, “three Peshmerga fighters were wounded in two separate drone attacks on bases in Sulaimani and Erbil, according to a ministry statement.”
Rudaw characterized the attacks as coming from “outlawed terrorist groups” which “have carried out more than ten attacks on Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) Peshmerga forces over the past three weeks.”
However, the use of missiles in the attacks and the precision may imply that the attack came from Iran or was with direct Iranian guidance to a militia in Iraq. The militias have also attacked the national intelligence headquarters in Baghdad, killing one person last week. In addition, they have targeted US forces dozens of times.
In many cases, the militias and Iran have targeted Kurdish opposition groups in the Kurdistan Region. Kurdish regional leaders such as Nechirvan Barzani, Masrour Barzani, and Bafel Talibani have sought to end the attacks.
However, talks with Baghdad and with Iran or others have not led to an end to the attacks. In fact, the attacks appear to be increasingly deadly.
One Iraqi militia, Kataib Hezbollah, had said it would pause attacks against US sites in Iraq during this week. This came after it also paused attacks over the weekend. The militias hope US forces and US diplomats will leave Baghdad. Iran would see this as a victory, as it has spread the war to Iraq.
The attack on the Peshmerga comes as the militias also attacked Syria overnight. In addition, several members of the PMF were killed in an airstrike in Anbar overnight.
Reports of the attack that killed the Peshmerga say it occurred on Mount Spilk in the Soran region. The Kurdistan Region is a close partner of the US and hosts US forces and a large US consulate. The militias have targeted the consulate and also the UAE consulate in Erbil.
