Drones, Rockets Target US Embassy in Baghdad

The US Embassy in Baghdad came under its heaviest fire since the latest US-Israel conflict with Iran began, Iraqi security sources said early Tuesday. Multiple rockets and at least five drones were launched from areas around the capital, with a Reuters witness seeing three drones head toward the embassy. Two of those were intercepted by the C-RAM air defense system, the witness said; a third made it into the compound, where flames and smoke were visible. NBC News has video. The attack marks the second time in three days that the embassy was targeted, notes CNN; two drones struck the compound on Saturday, and smoke and flames were visible.

An explosion was heard elsewhere in the city, another witness reported. There was no immediate comment from the embassy; Reuters said calls to its mobile numbers went unanswered. Iran-backed militias have repeatedly targeted US sites in Iraq in response to the ongoing war. The latest strike followed Monday's announcement by Iran-aligned Kataib Hezbollah that its senior commander and spokesperson had been killed, and by Iraq's Popular Mobilization Forces that airstrikes in the border town of al-Qaim had left at least eight of its fighters dead. Iraqi authorities have since deployed security forces across parts of Baghdad and sealed off the fortified Green Zone, which houses the embassy and key government offices.