Washington has informed Baghdad that IDF airstrikes against Iraq are “imminent,” unless the Iraqi government manages to prevent Iran-backed factions from launching attacks against Israel, according to sources cited by the Saudi news outlet Al-Hadath.
The US has told Iraq it has exhausted “all means of pressure on Israel,” and has asked Baghdad to quickly take action to prevent these attacks, the news channel reports.
On Monday, Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar called on the UN Security Council to pressure Baghdad to end attacks by paramilitaries in Iran’s “axis of resistance,” warning that Israel has the right to defend itself under the UN charter.
These militias regularly claim to have launched drone strikes on Israel, many of which are intercepted by Israeli air defenses. In early October a drone strike claimed by the Islamic Resistance in Iraq killed two Israeli soldiers and wounded 24 others at a military base in the Golan Heights.
Yesterday, Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani said during a cabinet meeting that Sa’ar’s threat was a pretext for Israel to attack Iraq and expand the war in the region, according to Al-Hadath.
However, the Iraqi newspaper Shafaq reports that Al-Sudani, who is also commander-in-chief of the Iraqi Army, has directed security forces to prevent any military activity by forces not under government control.