A senior military officer from a pro-Iranian faction has been killed in Iraq in an attack blamed on the United States

Two members of the organization Hashd Al Shaabiincluding a senior military officer, died this Thursday in Baghdad, the capital of Iraq a drone attack attributed to the United Statesannounced this coalition that brings together several Iraqi militias close to Iran.

Deputy Commander of Operations, Mushtaq Talib Al Saidi “he was martyred in an American attack”said the Al Nujaba movement, one of the coalition factions. According to a source from the group, who asked the AFP agency to remain anonymous, the attack took place with drones and targeted a logistical support center of Hashd Al Shaabi, in the eastern part of Baghdad.

“Two members were killed and seven others were injured”, He added. Another source within the coalition confirmed the death toll and attributed the attack to US forces.

For its part, the Iraqi government blamed the attack on the international anti-jihadist coalition deployed in the country, calling it “aggression”, it said in a statement.

“The Iraqi armed forces hold international coalition forces responsible for this attack”The office of Iraqi Prime Minister Mohamed Shia Al Sudani said this in a statement, calling it a “dangerous escalation and aggression”.

Hashd Al Shaabi (Popular Mobilization Unit) brings together former Shiite paramilitaries close to Iran who are now They are integrated into the Iraqi regular forces. The group has been the target of numerous attacks in Iraq in recent weeks, some claimed by the United States.

Since October 7, when the war between Israel and the Palestinian Islamic movement Hamas began in the Gaza Strip, US troops and those of the international anti-jihadist coalition deployed in Iraq and Syria have been the target of almost daily drone and rocket attacks.

Most of these attacks were claimed by groups linked to Hashd Al Shaabi They oppose US support for Israel.

Washington, which has had more than 100 attacks against it in Syria and Iraq since mid-October, did not react immediately. The country maintains around 2,500 troops in Iraq and 900 in Syria as part of the international coalition created to fight the Islamic State in 2014.

This Thursday’s attack comes against a backdrop of tension in the Middle East. At least 84 people died on Wednesday in Iran, in a double explosion near the tomb of General Qasem Soleimani, responsible for Iranian military operations in the Middle East and assassinated by the United States in Iraq on January 3, 2020.

The day before, Hamas number two, Saleh Al Aruri, an ally of Iran, had died in an attack in Beirut, which the Lebanese authorities attributed to Israel.

With information from AFP.