Iraq in the 2026 Iran war

The 2026 Iran war has involved Iraq, where Iranian forces and allied militias conducted missile and drone strikes against coalition facilities and targeted areas in Baghdad and Kurdistan Region.

Following the 2020 killing of Iranian General Qasem Soleimani, Iran struck U.S. bases in Iraq, including Al-Asad Airbase and Erbil, causing injuries.^[1] Later on, Iran‑aligned militias carried out periodic attacks on U.S. and coalition facilities during the Gaza war.^[2]

In northern Iraq's autonomous Kurdistan Region, Iranian forces and Iranian‑aligned militias launched hundreds of ballistic missiles and drones since late February 2026, primarily targeting bases and camps associated with Iranian Kurdish opposition groups as well as coalition military facilities in and around Erbil.^[3]

On 10 March 2026, a drone attack targeted the Baghdad Diplomatic Support Center, a logistics hub for U.S. diplomats near Baghdad International Airport. According to U.S. officials, six drones were launched toward the facility, five of which were intercepted while one impacted near a guard tower; no casualties were reported.^[4] U.S. officials said the drone involved in the attack was believed to have been launched by Iran-backed militias operating in Iraq.^[5]

On 11 March, Saraya Awliya al-Dam, a pro-Iran Iraqi militia and part of the Islamic Resistance in Iraq, claimed responsibility for four "special operations" targeting U.S. bases inside and outside Iraq over the previous 24 hours.^[6]

On 14 March, a missile struck a helipad at the United States embassy complex in Baghdad's heavily fortified Green Zone, causing smoke to rise above the compound.^[7] A day later, Iraq's Justice Ministry warned that strikes near Baghdad International Airport threatened the security of al-Karkh Central Prison, which housed thousands of ISIS detainees recently transferred from Syria.^[8]

Footage circulating online also purported to show Iranian-aligned militias, Kata'ib Hezbollah, carrying out drone strikes against Victory Base area close to Baghdad International Airport during the same period.^[9][10] The five missiles which struck the airport caused injuries to four people.^[11]

On 16 March, multiple explosions rocked Baghdad's Jadriyah district, killing at least four people in an air raid on a house used by an Iran-backed group.^[12] On 17 March, a video showed what appeared to be a drone attack on the Al Rasheed Hotel in the Green Zone in Baghdad.^[13] On 18 March, a drone hit the US embassy in Baghdad.^[14]

On 19 March, Kata'ib Hezbollah said it would pause attacks on the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad for five days under the condition that Israel's "displacement of civilians and bombardment" in Beirut as part of the 2026 Lebanon war came to an end.^[15] On 20 March, a drone attack targeted a US diplomatic site near Baghdad International Airport.^[16] On 21 March, one police officer was killed in a drone strike on the headquarters of the Iraqi National Intelligence Service in Mansour district, Baghdad.^[17] On 22 March, several rockets and drones were aimed at a US diplomatic and logistics center at Baghdad International Airport.^[18]

On 10 March, an airstrike killed four fighters affiliated with Iran‑linked Kata'ib al-Imam Ali in northern Iraq's Dibis District, near Kirkuk.^[19]

On 12 March, two Air Force Boeing KC-135 Stratotankers collided mid-air over western Iraq killing all six crew.^[20] Pro-Iranian groups, including the Islamic Resistance in Iraq, claimed responsibility for downing the tanker, though U.S. officials denied these claims.^[21] In the Akashat area of the Al-Qa'im District (near the Iraq–Syria border), strikes hit three sites belonging to the Popular Mobilization Forces' 19th Brigade, Harakat Ansar Allah al-Awfiya, killing at least 35 fighters and wounding around 90 others.^[22]

On 16 March, reports confirmed that Abu Ali al-Askari, a senior commander of Kata'ib Hezbollah, had been killed.^[23]

On 19 March, airstrikes targeted positions of the Popular Mobilization Forces in northern Iraq, including in Nineveh and Salah al-Din provinces, killing at least two fighters.^[24] The strikes were reportedly carried out by U.S. Apache attack helicopters as part of ongoing operations against Iran‑aligned militia groups to suppress threats to U.S. forces and interests, according to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Dan Caine.^[25]

Around the same time, drones struck the radar system at the Umm Qasr naval base in Basra province, causing minor damage but no reported casualties.^[26] On 20 March, a strike in Tuz Khurmatu, northern Iraq, killed one PMF fighter and wounded another.^[27] A day later, the Islamic Resistance in Iraq claimed responsibility for targeting 27 U.S. military bases in Iraq and across the region over the past 24 hours.^[28]

Clashes in Baghdad between Iran‑aligned militia supporters and Iraqi security forces, including protests near the Green Zone in early March following the assassination of Ali Khamenei, caused injuries and heightened security around government and diplomatic sites.^[29]

The Iraqi federal government condemned attacks on its territory, saying it would not allow Iraq to be used as a base for cross‑border strikes and calling for restraint while coordinating security with international partners.^[30] Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia' al-Sudani condemned the strikes on the PMF, calling them a "systematic and repeated aggression" and a "desperate attempt to cause chaos and hit social peace." Iraqi national security advisor Qasim al-Araji condemned the strikes on the PMF as a "cowardly terrorist attack."^[31] In response to plans of a Kurdish offensive into Iran, al-Araji said that Iraq will not allow an invasion of Iran to be launched from its territory, and stated that Iran had requested that Iraqi forces move to the border between the Iraqi Kurdistan and Iran to impede any aggression by Kurdish forces.^[32][32]

The conflict caused temporary closures and disruptions at Iraqi airports, including Baghdad and Erbil, as airlines canceled or rerouted flights due to safety concerns.^[33] Iraq national team's head coach, Graham Arnold, urged FIFA to postpone the inter‑continental playoff of the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification after airspace closures during the conflict prevented the squad from assembling, canceled a U.S. training camp, and left some players stranded or unable to obtain visas.^[34] However, despite these concerns, the Iraqi Football Association confirmed that the team would instead travel to Mexico by private plane, with president Adnan Dirjal stating that FIFA had been cooperative in helping to overcome logistical difficulties and facilitate the squad's journey.^[35]

• 2026 Iranian strikes on the Kurdistan Region
• 2026 Baghdad clashes
• Iran–Iraq relations