In a statement, the Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) claimed responsibility for a ballistic missile attack on Erbil, Iraq, stating that the objective was to “destroy espionage headquarters” and “target anti-Iranian groups.” Al-Hadath reported, citing security sources, that Iranian regime missiles fell near the U.S. consulate in Erbil.
Following the confirmation of the missile attacks by the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps on positions in Erbil, Iraq, Matthew Miller, spokesperson for the U.S. Department of State, condemned the attack and offered condolences to the families of the victims.
Adrienne Watson, spokesperson for the White House National Security Council, also referred to some claims made regarding the targeting of U.S. positions by the Revolutionary Guards missiles, stating that the United States has tracked the missile attacks by the Guards in northern Iraq and northern Syria and confirmed that no American personnel or facilities were targeted in these attacks.
The news networks Kurdistan 24 and Rudaw reported that the Revolutionary Guards’ missile attacks on Erbil on the evening of January 15 resulted in the destruction of properties and homes of civilians, as well as the killing of non-combatants and children.
In a statement, the Kurdistan Regional Security Council stated that four civilians were killed and six others were injured in these attacks. Among the victims were a merchant and several members of his family.
The organization called the IRGC‘s statements regarding the missile attacks “baseless claims” and described the repeated attacks as a violation of the sovereignty of the Kurdistan Region and Iraq. They called on the Iraqi government and the international community not to remain silent in the face of “this crime.”
The IRGC issued three separate statements after these attacks. In the first statement, they claimed responsibility for the attack on Erbil but asserted that they targeted “espionage headquarters and terrorist groups” with ballistic missiles. The IRGC did not mention the names of these “espionage” or “terrorist” groups in this statement, but a Telegram channel attributed to the IRGC posted videos and photos of these attacks, stating that the “American Al-Harir base” was targeted in the attack on Erbil.
In their second statement, the organization announced that they targeted “locations where commanders and key elements associated with the recent incidents in Kerman and Rask in Sistan and Baluchestan” in separate missile attacks on Syria. However, international or regional media did not react significantly to these claimed attacks by the IRGC and did not publish any pictures or images of these attacks.
In their third statement, the IRGC claimed to have destroyed the “intelligence headquarters of Israel’s Mossad” in the missile barrage around the U.S. consulate in Erbil, Iraq.
