Kataib Hezbollah commander killed in Baghdad in US strike

“(US) forces conducted a unilateral strike in Iraq in response to attacks on US service members, killing a Kataib Hezbollah commander directly responsible for planning and participating in attacks on US forces in the region,” a statement from the US military said.

A vehicle hit by a drone strike that killed a Kataib Hezbollah commander in Baghdad, Iraq on February 7, 2024. Photo: Reuters

The statement did not name the commander and added that there were no signs of civilian casualties. However, two unnamed security sources said the commander, Abu Baqir al-Saadi, was killed in a drone strike on a vehicle east of Baghdad.

One of the sources said three people were killed and the targeted vehicle was used by Iraq's Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF), a state security agency that includes dozens of armed groups, including Kataib Hezbollah.

Kataib Hezbollah was accused of carrying out a drone attack that killed three US soldiers in January at an outpost on Jordan’s border with Syria, which the Pentagon said was the group would suspend military operations against US troops in the region.

In January, a US retaliatory drone strike for the attack killed a senior Kataib Hezbollah commander in central Baghdad.

Due to the heightened tensions, a security source said on Wednesday that Iraqi special forces had been put on high alert in Baghdad and other units had been deployed inside the Green Zone, which houses international diplomatic missions, including the US Embassy.

Huy Hoang (according to Reuters)

Source: https://www.congluan.vn/quan-doi-my-tan-cong-uav-trung-xe-chi-huy-phien-quan-kataib-hezbollah-o-baghdad-post284001.html