Iraq summons Iranian Chargé d'Affaires, issues protest memo over Erbil attack

Shafaq News / The Iraqi Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced the summoning of the Iranian Chargé d'Affaires in Baghdad, Abu al-Fadl Azizi, on Tuesday morning. He was handed a protest memo regarding the missile attack conducted by the Revolutionary Guard (IRGC) on areas in Erbil, the capital of the Kurdistan Region (KRI).

The ministry stated that Mohamed Ridha Al-Husseini, the Acting Head of the Department of Neighboring Countries, delivered a protest memo expressing Iraq's strong condemnation of the attack on several areas in Erbil. The attack resulted in civilian casualties and caused damage to public and private property.

The ministry emphasized in the memo that this assault is a blatant violation of Iraq's sovereignty, strongly contradicts the principles of good neighborliness and international law, and poses a threat to regional security.

It is noteworthy that IRGC had earlier claimed responsibility for the attacks that targeted Erbil and stated that they came "in response to the crimes of the Zionist regime against the Islamic Republic, the latest of which was the killing of several IRGC leaders by Zionist fire, targeting a main Mossad spy center in KRI and destroying it with ballistic missiles."

The statement added that this Zionist center was the main one responsible for developing and launching espionage operations and planning terrorist activities in the region, especially against Iran.

The Security Council of the Kurdistan Region condemned, early today, the missile bombardment conducted by IRGC, targeting various areas in Erbil, as a "blatant violation of the sovereignty" of the Region and Iraq.

The Council stated that at 11:30 on the night of January 15 to January 16, 2024, IRGC bombarded several civilian areas in Erbil with ballistic missiles, resulting in the death of four civilians and the injury of six others, some of whom are in critical condition.

The statement added that IRGC declared that the attack targeted several locations of groups opposed to Iran, pointing out that this excuse has no basis, and we reject it. They always use baseless excuses to attack Erbil.

The statement emphasized that "Erbil, as a stable region, has never been a source of threat to any party."

The statement continued that the strikes carried out by the IRGC on Erbil are a "flagrant violation of the sovereignty of the region and Iraq," and the federal government and the international community must not remain silent about this crime.