Iran War Day 39: Explosions Across Baghdad

  

The news of the day was a series of strikes by the U.S. and Israel across Baghdad. The Federal Police’s 2^nd Division was hit in Sabi al-Bour in the north. This was likely a mistake as a nearby Hashd base was also struck. Five police were wounded. A rocket landed on a house in Amiriya killing two civilians while an airstrike blew up a home on Palestine Street. The latter was used to store weapons for the Resistance. Jets also targeted locations in Jamila and Maghreb Street in the east. Five Hashd were wounded at a camp in Taji outside of the city in the north.

 

There were more airstrikes in other provinces. The Turkmen 16^th Hashd Brigade was hit in the Taza and Bashir areas of south Kirkuk. Kataib Hezbollah’s 45^th Hashd Brigade lost one fighter in Qaim, Anbar. A Hashd headquarters was hit in Amerli, Salahaddin. Finally, the Martyr Abu Muntadhar al-Muhammadawi camp in Diyala was targeted.

 

The pro-Iran Resistance claimed 19 operations on April 7. That included two drones against a Peshmerga headquarters. A fighter’s house in Irbil was hit by three drones killing him and his wife. The Defense Ministry said air defenses shot down drones targeting a radar system at the Ain Al-Assad Air Base in Anbar. This is another direct assault upon the Iraqi Security Forces in an attempt to knock out their warning system probably in the belief that the government is sharing information with the Americans and to stop state interference. Two more drones were downed in Kirkuk by the army. A drone flew into the Baghdad Airport.

 

Jaish al-Ghadab which is one of the front groups of the Resistance took responsibility for a drone strike in Irbil that killed a couple on April 6. Since the start of the war the group has claimed 31 operations including 12 in Bahrain, 9 in Kuwait, 5 on the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad and 4 against Kurdistan.

 

Kataib Hezbollah announced it released American journalist Shelly Kittleson who they kidnapped a week ago in Baghdad. They demanded that she immediately leave the country.

 

The Peshmerga Ministry told the media that a wounded Peshmerga died from an Iranian missile strike back on March 24. Six missiles hit two Peshmerga bases causing dozens of casualties.

 

Kuwait was blamed for a missile strike on Khor al-Zubayr in southern Basra province. It landed on a house killing five civilians and wounding at least three more. As a result protesters some of which were from the Resistance stormed the Kuwait consulate in Basra city sacking the courtyard. The house had been used by the Hashd beforehand. It would be very unlike Kuwait to be responsible for this type of operation and was more likely done by the U.S. or Israel. The Resistance exploited it to blame their neighbor who they have condemned for supporting the war versus Iran.

 

Iraqi News claimed that 115 Iraqis have been killed in the war so far based upon official accounts. That’s very close to what the media has reported with 118 Iraqi deaths consisting of 95 Hashd al-Shaabi, 8 soldiers, 6 Peshmerga, 4 civilians, 2 police, 1 Kurdish security officer, 1 Defense Ministry official, and 1 Iraqi intelligence officer up to April 6. Iraq is the only country being victimized by both sides in the war. It’s another hit to Baghdad which has tried to be neutral but completely failed.

 

Al Alam had an article on whether the war will jeopardize Iraq’s foreign relations. Mustansiriya University Political Science Professor Assam al-Faily believed that all the effort to improve relations with the Gulf State is being undone. That’s because the Resistance is attacking the entire region and the government has not been able to control them. The U.S., Syria and Jordan will have a negative view of Iraq for the same reasons. The conflict will reinforce the belief that Baghdad stands with Tehran and not the Arab states and Washington. This could hurt investment and security cooperation.

 

Finally there was more news on Iraq’s financial troubles. The Kurdistan Regional Government noted that Baghdad had not sent budget money to cover the region’s public employee salaries for March. The government only made 55 billion dinars in March when it is supposed to send 120 billion dinars to the KRG for that period. Iraq is the most oil dependent country in the world and the war has cut off its main export route through the Strait of Hormuz. Alternative routes have been set up but their capacity is only a fraction of what the state was selling before. It’s been said that the government has foreign reserves to lean on and can borrow from the Central Bank of Iraq but it appears that hasn’t happened yet to fulfill its obligations to the Kurds.

 

SOURCES

 

Al Alam, “The Republic of Factions Swallows the State: Will Drones Undermine Iraq’s Efforts to Open Up to the World?” 4/7/26

 

Asharq Al-Awsat, “Fighter from Iraq’s PMF Killed in Strike near Syria border,” 4/7/26

 

Iraqi News, “At least 115 killed in Iraq since Feb. 28 as regional war intensifies,” 4/7/26

 

Kurdistan 24, “Kataeb Hezbollah Announces Release of Kidnapped U.S. Journalist in Baghdad,” 4/7/26

- “Missile Strike in Basra Kills Three as Child Pulled Alive from Rubble,” 4/7/26

- "Peshmerga Home and Headquarters Targeted in Drone Attacks: Ministry of Peshmerga,” 4/7/26

- “Peshmerga Ministry Announces Death of wounded Peshmerga After Iranian Missile Attack,” 4/7/26

 

Al Mada, “Kurdistan’s Salary Crisis Resurfaces: Declining Internal Revenues Disrupt Understandings with Baghdad,” 4/8/26

 

NINA, “Popular Mobilization Forces: A camp in Diyala was subjected to an aerial attack,” 4/7/26

 

Reuters, “Protesters break into Kuwaiti consulate in Iraq’s Basra after rocket attack kills three,” 4/7/26

 

Rudaw, “Iraqi pro-Iran group claims drone attack on Kurdistan Region,” 4/7/26

- “Two killed, several wounded in Baghdad aerial attacks,” 4/7/26

 

Salem, Amr, “Iraq increases oil exports via Turkey’s Ceyhan to 340,000 bpd,” Iraqi News, 4/7/26

 

Sassoon, Mustafa, “Explosions, Protests Grip Baghdad and Basra,” Al Hurra, 4/7/26

 

Shafaq News, “The Iraqi Ministry of Defense announced the interception of a drone that targeted a radar system inside Ain al-Asad Air Base,” 4/7/26

- “The Iraqi resistance announces it carried out 19 operations in the past 24 hours,” 4/7/26

- “A Popular Mobilization Forces headquarters was targeted on the outskirts of Amerli, east of Salah al-Din, and a member was killed in a bombing west of Anbar,” 4/7/26

- “Two airstrikes target two Popular Mobilization Forces positions south of Kirkuk,” 4/6/26

 

Al Sumaria, “After Ain al-Asad … Two planes shot down in Kirkuk," 4/7/26

- “Targeting the area surrounding the "American support” headquarters with a drone west of Baghdad,” 4/7/26