Security forces dismantle drone that fell near Kirkuk power station

KIRKUK — Security forces dismantled a drone that fell near a power station in Kirkuk on Tuesday without causing casualties or damage, though Iraq’s Electricity Ministry denied reports the drone had struck the facility itself.

A security source told 964media the drone came down near the Abdullah Hamza power station and was secured and dismantled by explosives units. The Electricity Ministry said the incident occurred more than three kilometers from the plant and categorically denied reports of a direct strike, saying all power facilities across Iraq continue to operate normally.

The incident comes on one of the most violent days in Iraq since the regional war began Feb. 28. Iranian ballistic missiles killed six Peshmerga fighters and wounded about 30 near Soran in Erbil governorate early Tuesday. An airstrike in Anbar killed PMF Anbar operations commander Saad Daway al-Baiji and 14 others, prompting Prime Minister Sudani to convene an emergency meeting of the Ministerial Council for National Security. Separate strikes hit PMF positions in Babil and Mosul, and an airstrike on the Iranian side of the Shalamcheh border crossing near Basra wounded five truck drivers including two Iraqis.