Iraq has approached the Iranian and US governments in a bid to prevent being caught up in a regional escalation, officials said Saturday, as Washington’s ally Israel and Iran traded blows.
The government in Baghdad is a close ally of Tehran, but also a strategic partner of Iran’s arch-foe, the United States, which has some 2,500 troops in Iraq as part of an anti-jihadist coalition.
A senior Iraqi security official told AFP that Baghdad had asked Tehran not to strike US targets in its territory.
“The request was made. They promised us positive things,” the official said, requesting anonymity to discuss sensitive matters.
An Iraqi government official, also requesting anonymity, said, “Iraq officially asked the United States of America not to allow Israeli aircraft to violate Iraqi airspace.”
Baghdad on Friday lodged a complaint with the United Nations over Israel’s use of its airspace to attack Iran.
“The United States… is required to assume its responsibilities and prevent any violations that affect Iraq’s security or endanger its stability,” the government official said, citing Washington’s role as the leader of the international coalition against the Islamic State group.
Before the current escalation, which began early Friday with a series of Israeli attacks on military and nuclear sites in Iran, Tehran had threatened to strike military bases hosting US forces in the region in the event of any conflict should nuclear talks with Washington fail.
Throughout the Gaza war, which began in October 2023 and has pitted Israel against Iran-backed Palestinian group Hamas, Tehran-aligned armed factions have launched dozens of rocket and drone attacks targeting US forces in Iraq and in neighboring Syria.
Before the wave of attacks on Iran began, the United States on Wednesday announced it was reducing staffing at its Baghdad embassy, citing security reasons.
Several pro-Iran groups in Iraq called on Friday for the accelerated departure of US forces from the country, with the powerful Kataeb Hezbollah warning of “additional wars in the region.”
