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Rockets launched at US forces stationed at Ain al-Asad airbase in Iraq
Four rockets struck Thursday near Ain al-Asad airbase in Iraq, which houses U.S. troops, but there were no reported injuries, and there was no damage to the base, Fox News has learned.
A U.S. defense official told Fox News none of the rockets landed inside the base.
The attack comes just days after U.S. and Iraqi officials met at a Pentagon summit to discuss when the coalition against ISIS in Iraq could end and transition to a bilateral security relationship with some U.S. troops likely remaining.
ISIS REMAINS GLOBAL THREAT A DECADE AFTER DECLARING CALIPHATE, US MILITARY OFFICIAL SAYS
Iraqi security forces at Ain al-Asad airbase near a military helicopter in Anbar province, Iraq, Dec. 29, 2019. (Reuters/Thaier Al-Sudani )
Iraqi factions aligned with Iran have called on all 2,500 U.S. troops that remain in the country to withdraw.
The attack on the airbase also comes just one day after fighter jets intercepted two Russian Tu-95 “Bear” bombers and two Chinese H-6 bombers off the coast of Alaska.
IRAQ ASKS UN TO ABANDON POLITICAL MISSION IN BAGHDAD
U.S. Army soldiers train at al-Asad air base in western Iraq. (U.S. Army )
NORAD fighter jets from the United States and Canada conducted the interception.
A picture taken Jan. 13, 2020, during a press tour organized by the U.S.-led coalition fighting the remnants of the Islamic State group, shows U.S. soldiers clearing rubble at Ain al-Asad military airbase in the western Iraqi province of Anbar. (Ayman Henna)
Iran-backed factions in Iraq have targeted U.S. troops at bases in the country dozens of times since the start of the Israel-Gaza War in October with a slowdown since February.
Fox News’ Stephany Prince and Reuters contributed to this report.