Five rockets hit Baghdad airport, wounding five

BAGHDAD — Five rockets struck Baghdad International Airport and surrounding areas Sunday evening, wounding five people and prompting authorities to relieve sector commanders and intelligence officers of their duties, Iraq’s Security Media Cell said.

Security Media Cell chief Saad Maan said the attack occurred at around 7 p.m., with rockets landing inside the airport compound, at a water desalination station, near Alaa Air Base and at Baghdad Central Prison — also known as Karkh — in western Baghdad. Four airport employees and security personnel were wounded, along with an engineer, Maan said.

Security forces launched search operations immediately after the attack and seized the launch platform hidden inside a vehicle in Radwaniyah district, west of Baghdad. Authorities also announced disciplinary measures, with directives issued to relieve sector commanders and intelligence officers in the area while legal proceedings were initiated.

The airport and the adjacent Victory Base Complex have been repeatedly targeted since the regional war between the United States, Israel and Iran began Feb. 28. Earlier Sunday, drones struck the Victory Base Complex, sparking a major fire visible on social media. Residents reported hearing six powerful explosions.

The attacks follow a string of strikes on military and diplomatic targets across Iraq. Early Saturday, the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad’s Green Zone was hit, with officials telling AFP that a drone or rocket struck the compound. In Erbil, a drone attack on the UAE Consulate General wounded two security guards and damaged the building.

The Kurdistan Region has faced at least 200 drone, missile and rocket attacks since the war began, according to Community Peacemaker Teams – Iraqi Kurdistan, striking military installations, airports, oil facilities and residential areas across Erbil and Sulaymaniyah governorates.