Two officials, one American defense official and the other regional security official, reported: That Iranian-backed factions are launching one-way attack drones against Israel from inside Iraq, which U.S. and partner forces have had to intercept, according to the Associated Press .
The agency quoted the two officials as saying that the marches have been a problem since Hamas’ attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, and are not Iran’s revenge for the Israeli strikes last week .
But drone attacks have increased in recent weeks. The regional security official said there were an average of five attacks a day from inside Iraq against Israel by Iranian-allied militias , and in the past week, eight drones were launched in a 24-hour period .
The two officials indicated that US forces and partner forces were intercepting the attack drones .
The regional security official said that the ongoing attacks increased the possibility of Israel responding directly to them .
The so-called “Islamic Resistance in Iraq” continues almost daily attacks with missiles and drones targeting Israeli targets against the backdrop of the war in Gaza and Lebanon .
Since April, Israel has confirmed a number of air strikes from the east, without pointing the finger at a specific party, and has announced several times that it has intercepted drones outside its airspace .
Some factions affiliated with the Iraqi resistance also carried out dozens of attacks against American forces deployed in Iraq and Syria as part of the international coalition against ISIS .
Last October, Prime Minister and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, Mohammed Shia al-Sudani, stressed that the decision of war and peace is made by the Iraqi state and its constitutional institutions .
Al-Sudani said: “Anyone who deviates from this will confront the state, which relies on the power of the constitution and the law in carrying out its duties and tasks,” stressing that “the interests of Iraq and the Iraqis are above all considerations .”
