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SvennoJ on 20 April 2024
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Member of Iraq’s Popular Mobilisation Forces killed, 8 injured in base blast

The army says in a statement that no drones or fighter jets were detected in the airspace of the Babil (Babylon) province before or during the blast. As we reported earlier, a huge blast rocked a military base south of Baghdad used by PMF.

Iraq blast may be ‘another message’

Political analyst Rich Outzen says there is still not enough information to know who was behind the blast that hit a base south of the Iraqi capital Baghdad.

“If it is confirmed that it was an aircraft that raises the question of American or Israeli [involvement],” said Outzen, who is a non-resident Senior Fellow at the Atlantic Council in Turkey and senior fellow at The Jamestown Foundation.

Outzen told Al Jazeera that the Biden administration has been trying to tamp down on regional tensions and carefully choreographing limits on the exchange of fire directly between Iran and Israel.

“Yet this attack would be more in line with what Israel has done below the threshold of direct attacks on Iran, regionally as they’ve attacked Iranian-backed militias frequently in Syria, in Iraq,” he said.

“This may be another message to Iran saying if you’re going to use Hezbollah, potentially, or Hamas, to attack us. We will attack proxies in Iraq and Syria,” he added.

Removed videos show crater in Iraqi base, suggesting it was hit by projectile

Al Jazeera’s Osama Bin Javaid says that videos uploaded – and then immediately deleted – by soldiers in the Iraqi base rocked by a blast earlier this morning showed a large crater, indicating that a projectile hit the site.

“Iraqi government sources, the security media cell, said this was an incident that was being investigated,” Bin Javaid said, reporting from the Iraqi capital Baghdad. Iraqi government sources have also released a statement saying that no drones or fighter jets were detected in the airspace of the Babil (Babylon) area before or during the blast.

Al Jazeera’s Bin Javaid also said that earlier messages posted on social media by the Popular Mobilisation Forces blaming the United States for the blasts have now been removed. This comes as the Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani is in the US.

“This is a significant base because not just because it hosts the PMF, but also Iraqi federal police and Iraqi military, so if this was an outside strike, act beyond its borders it would be considered an act of aggression,” Bin Javaid added.

Iraq’s Popular Mobilisation Forces says military base blast was result of attack

The armed group has said the explosion which took place at its command post at Kalsu military base was the result of an attack. The PMF’s statement came soon after Iraqi government sources said no drones or fighter jets were detected in the airspace in the area before or during the blast.

What we know about the Iraqi base blast

  • One Popular Mobilisation Forces (PMF) member was killed and eight were injured in the blast, an army statement said.
  • The base hosted Iraq’s PMF, Iraqi federal police and Iraqi military forces.
  • The PMF says the explosion was the result of an attack.
  • Videos posted, and then deleted, on social media – and seen by Al Jazeera – showed a crater, suggesting the site was hit by a projectile.
  • Another group, the Iraqi Resistance forces, said this was an Israeli attack to which they responded with a drone strike against the Israeli city of Eilat.
  • However, the Iraqi government said this was an explosion that they were investigating without identifying who or what was behind it.
  • And the Iraqi military says that there were no drones or fighter jets detected in the airspace of the Babil area before or during the blast.
  • An Al Jazeera team trying to access the base was turned back and was not given access to the wounded.
  • The PMF formed in 2014 in Iraq in response to a fatwa by Iraq’s most influential Shia leader, Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani. as a coalition of dozens of armed factions, many with close links to Iran, to combat the growing threat of ISIL (ISIS).
  • The force is Shia-led but also includes others. It has been recognised as a formal security force by Iraqi authorities since 2018.
  • While the PMF’s exact troop numbers are unknown, it is estimated to command anywhere between 40,000 and 100,000 fighters.
  • Several groups within the PMF, such as Kataib Hezbollah, have launched attacks against US forces in Iraq, creating tensions with the Iraqi government.
  • On top of its military strength, the PMF also exerts political influence. The Shia Coalition Framework, which represents PMF-linked groups, won more than 30 percent of Iraq’s seats in the last provincial elections.