Rockets Hit Base Near Baghdad Airport  12/09 06:22

   BAGHDAD (AP) -- Four Katyusha rockets hit a military base near Baghdad 
International Airport early on Monday, wounding at least six soldiers, Iraqi 
security officials said. It was the latest incident in a series of rocket 
attacks in recent weeks. 

   Iraqi security forces discovered a rocket launcher and some defused rockets 
nearby after searching the area following the the attack, a statement from 
Iraqi security forces said. 

   According to the security officials, the area targeted by the rockets is 
frequented by military advisers from the U.S.-led coalition. The officials 
spoke on condition of anonymity in line with regulations. 

   No one immediately claimed responsibility for the attack. 

   Last Tuesday, five rockets landed inside the Ain al-Asad airbase, a 
sprawling complex in the western Anbar desert that hosts U.S. forces, without 
causing any casualties and little damage. 

   On at least two occasions last month in Baghdad, rockets landed in areas 
around the heavily fortified Green Zone, the seat of Iraq's government, causing 
no casualties or damages. 

   And near the northern Iraqi city of Mosul, a barrage of Katyusha rockets 
targeted an Iraqi air base that houses American troops in early November. No 
members of the U.S.-led coalition were hurt.

   Some hard-line Iraqi militias loyal to Iran have recently threatened to 
carry out attacks against Americans in the country. The U.S. maintains about 
5,000 troops in Iraq.

   American forces withdrew from Iraq in 2011 but returned in 2014 at the 
invitation of the government to help battle the Islamic State group after it 
seized vast areas in the north and west of the country, including Mosul, Iraq's 
second largest city. The U.S.-led coalition provided crucial air support as 
Iraqi forces regrouped and drove IS out in a costly three-year campaign.


(KR)