Baghdad, March 17 – Facilities within the US Embassy complex in Baghdad's Green Zone were set ablaze following an attack on the embassy early Tuesday.
Two booby-trapped drones landed within the embassy perimeter, and the subsequent explosions ignited a fire visible from outside the complex, according to a source from Iraq's Interior Ministry, who spoke to Xinhua on condition of anonymity.
Sirens were activated immediately across the site during the assault, while the embassy's defense system failed to intercept the incoming drones, Xinhua news agency reported, quoting the source.
There were no immediate reports of casualties, and the resulting fire indicates damage to the facilities.
The embassy was subjected to multiple attacks from Monday evening to the early hours of Tuesday.
Footage showed a drone detonating just feet from the complex, indicating multiple penetrations of the C-RAM defense system in a single evening.
The Green Zone in central Baghdad houses Iraqi government buildings, the parliament, and several foreign missions, including the US embassy. The heavily fortified zone has been a frequent target of rocket and mortar fire in recent years.
Meanwhile, two drones targeted the Majnoon oil field in southern Iraq late Monday, the oil ministry said.
Oil ministry spokesperson Saheb Bazoun said one drone struck a telecommunications tower but caused no damage. A second drone targeted offices of a US company operating at the site, a security official confirmed.
Earlier on Monday, Iraq's paramilitary Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) said that six of its members were killed and four others wounded in an Israeli attack in the western province of Anbar.
According to a PMF statement, the strike targeted a checkpoint in the town of al-Qaim near the Syrian border.
The group described the location as an "official security site," stating that the casualties occurred while the members were "performing their duty of protecting the land and sovereignty."