One member of the anti-American Shiite militia group was killed in the attack and eight injured. It blames the US but Washington denies carrying it out.
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Iraqi authorities said on Saturday that they are investigating an explosion that struck a base belonging to the Popular Mobilization Forces, a coalition of Iran-allied militias, overnight.
Militia officials had initially described the explosion at the Kalsu military base north of Babylon - a former US base that was handed over to the Iraqi military in 2011 - as an airstrike, blaming it on U.S. forces. The U.S. Central Command denied in a statement that it had carried out any airstrikes in Iraq. The PMF in a statement Saturday afternoon described the incident as an "attack" but did not blame any specific party.
Iraq's Security Media Cell said the country's air defence command had not detected any drones or fighter plane in the airspace of Babylon before or during the explosion, which killed one PMF member and injured eight other people, including an Iraqi army soldier.
The PMF is a coalition of primarily Shiite, Iran-backed armed groups designated as an “independent military formation” within the Iraqi armed forces.
In recent months, some of the PMF member groups launched attacks on U.S. forces based in Iraq and Syria, which they said was in retaliation for Washington’s support of Israel in the ongoing war in Gaza. Those attacks halted after three U.S. soldiers were killed in a strike on a base in Jordan, near the Syrian border, prompting U.S. retaliatory strikes in Iraq.
The explosion at the PMF base came a day after a suspected Israeli strike in Iran. An umbrella group of Iran-backed militias calling itself the Islamic Resistance in Iraq said Saturday that it had launched a drone attack against the Israeli Red Sea town of Eilat in response to what it described as Israel's "violation of Iraqi sovereignty in its treacherous targeting of the Popular Mobilisation Forces camps."
There were no reports in Israel of an attack on Eilat and no immediate comment from the Israeli military.
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Summary
- An explosion at an Iraqi military base housing Iranian military members has reportedly left one military member dead and 8 others wounded
- The investigation is ongoing as no military drones or aircraft were detected before the explosion, the US claims it had no involvement
- Kalso military base was housing Iranian military personnel
- World leaders are calling for calm after Israeli missiles and drones reportedly struck Iran on Friday near major airbases in Isfahan, central Iran
- Biden administration keeping quiet with press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre declining to weigh in on Fridays strikes telling reporters during the White House press briefing that the Biden administration was going to avoid commenting on the subject altogether
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Pro-Iranian forces refer to explosion on military base as 'attack'
The Chief of Staff of the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF), Abdulaziz Al-Muhammadawi, visited the site where an explosion in an Iraqi military base killed one and injured eight others.
The explosion was referred to as an 'attack' in a tweet by the PMF who are investigating the site.
🔻 #هام
— مديرية الإعلام - هيئة الحشد الشعبي (@teamsmediawar) April 20, 2024
رئيس أركان هيئة #الحشد_الشعبي يصل آمرية #بابل ويطمئن على سلامة المقاتلين والجرحى#مديرية_الاعلام
وصل رئيس هيئة أركان الحشد الشعبي عبد العزيز المحمداوي إلى موقع آمرية بابل.
واطلع المحمداوي على مكان الانفجار الذي طال موقع آمرية بابل العسكري والذي يضم قوة من الدفاع… pic.twitter.com/aWqNkQLpjY
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One killed and eight injured in Iraq military base blast
A Member of Iraq’s Popular Mobilisation Forces was killed in an explosion at an Iraqi military base, whilst another eight were injured.
The Iraqi army said in a statement that no drones or fighter jets were detected before or after the explosion.
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The ministry said one strike hit a residential building in the city.
World leaders call for calm after Israel's retaliation against Iran
Footage released of Iraqi military base post-explosion
An airstrike hit a base belonging to the Popular Mobilization Forces, a coalition of Iran-allied militias in Iraq early Saturday morning, the group said in a statement.
Video from AP shows the damage to the Kalsu military base following this explosion.
The PMF is a coalition of primarily Shiite, Iran-backed armed groups that joined in the fight against the Islamic State group after it seized large sections of Iraq in 2014.
In 2016, the Iraqi government designated the Popular Mobilization Forces as an “independent military formation” within the Iraqi armed forces.
In recent months, some of the PMF member groups had launched attacks on US forces based in Iraq and Syria, which they said was in retaliation for Washington’s support of Israel in the ongoing war in between Israel and Hamas.
Hamas condemns Iraq explosion
Hamas “strongly condemns” reported explosions on a base of the Popular Mobilisation Forces (PMF) in Iraq and “considers it a violation of Iraq’s sovereignty”, Al Jazeera reported.
“We hold the Biden administration responsible for the escalation in the region through its supply and support for the Nazi war of extermination against our Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip,” the group said in a statement.