Zaidi condemns Erbil drone attack, orders coordination with Kurdistan forces

BAGHDAD — Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi condemned the drone attack over Erbil and directed federal security agencies to work with Kurdistan Region forces to prevent further strikes.

“From the standpoint of our constitutional responsibility, we strongly condemn the attack carried out by drones that violated the airspace of Erbil city in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq,” Zaidi said in a post on X.

He said the government would not tolerate attacks intended to disrupt Iraq’s stability, describing them as “sinful attempts that desperately seek to undermine the stability of our people and their confident path toward building the state and social peace.”

“We directed the competent security agencies and formations to exert every effort, together with the security forces in the region, to take all necessary measures to prevent the recurrence of these attacks,” he said.

Zaidi also ordered security forces to act against anyone seeking to threaten public safety, saying authorities would work to “put an end to everyone who tries to harm the security of our honorable Iraqi society, wherever they may be.”

No group has claimed the attack. Community Peacemaker Teams – Iraqi Kurdistan, which monitors security incidents in the region, documented 751 attacks across the Kurdistan Region between late February and late May, attributing them to Iran and Iran-backed Iraqi armed groups. Erbil governorate accounted for 588 of them, more than three-quarters of the total. Kurdistan Region officials have repeatedly called on Baghdad and Zaidi’s predecessors to act against the groups behind the strikes.

The statement came during Zaidi’s visit to Washington, where he told U.S. officials there would be no justification for armed factions to exist after Sept. 30, when the U.S.-led coalition’s mission ends. His government’s plan to bring weapons under state control has divided the Iran-aligned factions: Asaib Ahl al-Haq, Saraya al-Salam and the Imam Ali Battalions have moved to comply, while Kataib Hezbollah, Harakat al-Nujaba and Kataib Sayyid al-Shuhada have rejected disarmament, arguing their weapons remain necessary as long as U.S. forces are in Iraq. The coalition known as the Islamic Resistance in Iraq rejected the Washington visit itself.

Air defenses intercepted drones over Erbil governorate on Wednesday night, with falling debris causing material damage but no reported casualties, according to preliminary information. The first was intercepted at about 9 p.m., and debris fell in several neighborhoods. Videos circulated on social media showed a fragment striking and damaging a vehicle on an Erbil street without injuring anyone. A second drone was directed toward the city about 15 minutes later. Security forces deployed to the affected locations, opened investigations and collected debris.

The incident was the first attack directed at Erbil city itself since fighting resumed between the United States and Iran.

Erbil has faced repeated drone attacks in 2026 targeting the airport, energy facilities, commercial sites and locations on the city’s outskirts.