• Iraq’s government affirms the readiness of its armed forces to “thwart any attempts at targeting neighbouring countries within our regional sphere”.

Fire breaks out in Iraq’s Sulaimaniyah after drone attack

A large fire has broken out in the Iraqi city of Sulaimaniyah in the northern Kurdish region following a drone attack, according to Iraqi media.

The attack targeted the Peshmerga’s 70th Brigade headquarters but was intercepted, Shafaq News reported. It said “the wreckage of one interceptor target caught fire after falling near the headquarters”.

Videos published online by the Rudaw news outlet showed a large fire at the site.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack. But Lebanese news outlet Al Mayadeen reported that the attack was carried out by Iran-backed groups in Iraq, while the Iranian semi-official Fars news agency described the site as the headquarters of “anti-Iran terrorists”.

Iran has carried out several strikes against Kurdish opposition fighters in Iraq since the US and Israel launched their war on Iran on February 28.

Iranian, Iraqi FMs discuss regional developments in call

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi spoke to his Iraqi counterpart, Fuad Hussein, about the latest regional developments in a phone call late on Sunday, according to Iran’s state broadcaster.

The two also discussed ways to strengthen bilateral cooperation, IRIB reports.

The conversation follows US-Saudi attacks on Iran-backed targets across Iraq, as well as Iranian drone strikes in northern Iraq.