US Embassy in Baghdad says it was attacked

The U.S. Embassy in Baghdad said Thursday that it was attacked by terrorist groups, the latest amid a series of attacks targeting U.S. personnel in Iraq and Syria. 

“The U.S. Embassy compound was attacked this evening by terrorist groups attempting to undermine Iraq’s security, sovereignty and international relations,” the embassy said on Twitter. “We have long said that these sorts of reprehensible attacks are an assault not just on diplomatic facilities, but on the sovereignty of Iraq itself.”

The statement didn’t provide further details on what transpired.

The Associated Press, citing Iraqi security officials, reported that at least four rockets targeted the embassy’s Green Zone and that three of the rockets struck within the perimeter of the embassy. The fourth hit a school in a nearby residential area.

Witnesses told the AP that they heard the embassy’s defense system during the attack. 

Several attempted attacks occurred this month targeting areas where U.S. personnel are located in Iraq and Syria.

The attacks began on Jan. 3, the second anniversary of the U.S. drone strike that killed Iran’s top general, Qassem Soleimani.

That day, two drones approaching a base housing U.S. troops near Baghdad’s airport were shot down. A day later, on Jan. 4, a second attempted attack targeting the Al an-Asad air base was intercepted.

Then on Jan. 5, there were two separate attacks on U.S. forces in Iraq and Syria. In one incident, a rocket struck the same base that was targeted days prior.

Separately, forces were targeted by eight rounds of indirect fire at Green Village in Syria, which officials said was carried out by an Iran-backed militia.

The U.S. ended its combat mission against ISIS in December, but about 2,500 troops remain in Iraq as the U.S. takes on an advisory role.