Attack on Taji Base Part of Iraqi People’s Reaction to US Assassinations: Iran

In a statement on Friday, Seyyed Abbas Mousavi said the US cannot shirk its responsibility and blame others for the consequences of its illegal presence in Iraq and the Iraqi people’s reaction to the assassination and slaughter of Iraqi commanders and fighters.

“Instead of making dangerous moves and baseless accusations, Mr Trump had better thoroughly reassess the presence and behaviour of his forces in the region, and seriously avoid spreading the virus of pinning the blame on others and making accusations with the aim of justifying illogical behaviour and evading responsibility,” he added.

Mousavi’s comments came after a rocket attack on Wednesday hit a military base housing American troops near the capital Baghdad. 

The attack against Taji military camp killed three members of the US-led coalition, including two Americans and one Briton.

So far, no group has claimed responsibility for the attack in which 18 107 mm Katyusha rockets struck the camp. However, Trump on Thursday claimed the attackers were a group that “most likely looked like it could be backed by Iran.” 

He later authorized the US military to respond to the rocket attack, which resulted in launching a string of airstrikes against multiple locations of the Iraqi Popular Mobilization Units (PMU), better known by the Arabic name Hashd al-Sha’abi, late Thursday.

Anti-terror Commander of the Quds Force of Iran’s Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) Lieutenant General Qassem Soleimani and a number of his comrades, including Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, the deputy commander of the Hashd al-Shaabi, were assassinated in a US drone attack near the Baghdad International Airport on January 3, 2020.

The IRGC took revenge for the assassination of General Soleimani by attacking the US’ Ain al-Assad base in Iraq; however, Iraqi resistance groups have also vowed to retaliate the assassination of Abu Mahdi.