The Minister of Health in the Kurdistan Region, Saman Barzanji, confirmed that the explosions that rocked Erbil, on Saturday, did not cause any casualties or injuries, while “the target of the attacks is not yet known.”
Barzanji said in a statement carried by the Iraqi News Agency (INA), “There are no casualties, and no wounded have reached hospitals.”
“We are monitoring the damage and emergency crews are on alert,” the official said.
Missile bombing targets several areas in the city of #erbil There are no details yet regarding the reasons or the responsible parties.
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— IrfaaSawtak Raise Your Voice (@IrfaaSawtak) March 12, 2022
And the Iraqi Prime Minister, Mustafa Al-Kazemi, said in a tweet, that he followed up with the Prime Minister of the Regional Government the developments of the situation, indicating that the security forces would investigate the attack.
The attack that targeted the dear city of Erbil and terrorized its residents is an attack on the security of our people. We have followed up with the brother of the President of the Kurdistan Regional Government the developments of the situation, and our security forces will investigate this attack and we will address any prejudice to the security of our cities and the safety of our citizens.
— Mustafa Al-Kadhimi March 13, 2022
The Governor of Erbil, Omid Khoshnaw, announced that “several missiles fell on Erbil Governorate,” stressing that “the target group is not known, whether it is the American consulate or the airport,” according to press statements carried by “Aware”.
An official in the US Central Command confirmed that “there were no casualties among the American soldiers in the attack on Erbil,” adding, “We cannot confirm the source of the missiles.”
The targets of the attacks have not yet been clarified, while the Ministry of Transport and Communications in the regional government denied that Erbil International Airport was targeted in the attack, noting that “the news regarding the suspension of air traffic is unfounded.”
The President of the Kurdistan Regional Government, Masrour Barzani, condemned the attack, and said in a statement, “Erbil will not bow to the cowards. We condemn this terrorist attack that was launched on a number of Erbil areas, and we call on the heroic residents of Erbil to remain calm and implement the directives of the security institutions.”
In recent months, attacks of this kind, targeting especially US forces and interests in Iraq, have been repeated.
These attacks, which were not claimed by any party, are usually attributed by Washington to Iraqi factions loyal to Iran.
