Iraqi pro-Iran group extends pause in US embassy attacks
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The US Embassy headquarters in Baghdad, pictured on March 18.
PHOTO: AFP
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BAGHDAD – An Iran-backed armed group announced on March 23 that it would continue its five-day pause on attacking the US embassy in Baghdad.
Since the start of the war in the Middle East, pro-Iran armed groups have claimed responsibility for near-daily attacks on US interests in Iraq and across the region, while strikes have also targeted these groups.
On March 19, Kataeb Hezbollah, designated a “terrorist organisation” by Washington, said it would stop attacking the Baghdad embassy under certain conditions, including an end to attacks on residential parts of Iraq and the southern suburbs of Beirut.
The latter area is a bastion of Lebanon’s Hezbollah, which is also Iran-backed and is at war with Israel.
“The deadline given to the embassy of American evil will be extended by an additional five days,” Kataeb Hezbollah said in a statement on March 23.
It added that it would respond to “any violations by the enemy accordingly” and inform a mediator of its “response mechanism”.
Iraq has been unwillingly drawn into the regional conflict triggered by US-Israeli strikes on Iran on Feb 28.
Kataeb Hezbollah’s announcement comes after a series of overnight strikes targeting a US diplomatic and logistics centre at Baghdad International Airport.
Late on March 22, three strikes also hit south of Baghdad, with a local emergency crisis cell saying they targeted a stronghold of former paramilitary coalition Hashed al-Shaabi, also known as the Popular Mobilisation Forces.
A Kataeb Hezbollah official said on condition of anonymity that his group had been targeted. AFP
