As A Target For Assassination, Iraqi PM Mustafa Al-Kadhimi's House Was Attacked By Drones, Lucky Survivors

Archives - Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi attends the Baghdad Summit in Baghdad, Iraq, August 28, 2021. (ANTARA/Reuters/as)

JAKARTA - A drone with explosives targeted the residence of Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi in Baghdad, Sunday, November 7 morning.

The Iraqi military said Khadimi survived unharmed in what they described as an attempted assassination.

"However, a number of members of Khadimi's security forces were injured in the incident," a security source said.

The attack followed a series of protests in the Iraqi capital over the results of last month's general election that turned violent.

The United States Department of State condemned the attack and offered to assist with the investigation.

"This manifest act of terrorism, which we strongly condemn, was directed into the heart of the Iraqi nation," spokesman Ned Price said in a statement.

"We are in close contact with Iraqi security forces tasked with upholding Iraqi sovereignty and independence and have offered to assist in investigating this attack."

The groups leading the protests and complaints about the results of the October 10 elections are Iranian-backed armed militias.

They lost many parliamentary votes in that election and have alleged fraud in the election and vote count.

No group has yet claimed responsibility for the attack on Khadimi's residence in Baghdad's Green Zone, a heavily fortified complex of government buildings and foreign embassies.

An Iraqi military statement said the attack targeted Khadimi's residence and that he was in "good health". There was no more detailed explanation in the statement.

Kadhimi's official Twitter account said the prime minister was safe and asked the public for calm.

Two government officials said Kadhimi's residence had been hit by at least one explosion and confirmed to Reuters that the prime minister was safe.

A security source told Reuters that six members of Khadimi's security forces who were guarding outside his residence were injured.

Western diplomats in the Green Zone who were in the vicinity of the incident said they heard explosions and gunfire in the area.

Supporters of Iran-backed militia groups, which have over the past few years developed political power in parliament and government, protested the results of October's elections.

The protests they staged on Friday turned violent when demonstrators pelted police with stones near the Green Zone, injuring several officers.

Police retaliated with tear gas and gunfire, killing at least one demonstrator, according to security sources and a hospital in Baghdad.

Independent analysts say the election results are a reflection of anger against Iran-backed militias.

The armed groups are accused of involvement in the killing of nearly 600 people who took to the streets for anti-government demonstrations in several places in 2019.