Iraqi security official: Explosions injure three people at a military base loyal to Iran

CNN
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At least three people were injured after five explosions rocked a military base belonging to an Iranian-backed militia in Iraq, a local security official told CNN on Saturday.

The explosions occurred at a site belonging to the Popular Mobilization Forces, according to Muhannad Al-Anazi, a member of the security committee in Babil Governorate, south of the capital, Baghdad.

There was no immediate indication of the cause.

Israeli and American officials said that neither of them was involved in the explosion, a day after it occurred Military strike on Iran Which was attributed to Israel.

The Popular Mobilization Forces, also referred to as the Popular Mobilization Forces, is a Shiite-majority paramilitary force supported by Iran Based in Iraq. Unlike other Iranian-backed groups across the region, the PMUs are tied to local government, and closely linked to the Iran-aligned Shiite blocs that have dominated politics in Iraq for years.

The Popular Mobilization Forces said that the explosion occurred “at the Kelso military base in Al-Mashrou’ district on the highway north of Babil Governorate.” The Popular Mobilization Forces added that investigators are currently at the site of the explosion, which also caused material losses.

She added: “We will provide you with the details as soon as the preliminary investigation is completed.”

The explosion comes at a time of heightened tension in the Middle East, with Israel waging a war against Hamas in Gaza, after the Iranian-backed Palestinian militant group launched a deadly incursion into southern Israel in October.

The exchange of strikes this month also brought the decades-long shadow war between Israel and Iran into the open.

Israel implemented a Military strike on Iran A US official told CNN early Friday, in a potentially dangerous escalation. Israel has He did not comment Iran did not specify the source of the attack, and no serious damage was reported.

After the Iraq explosion, an Israeli official told CNN that he was not involved.

Meanwhile, US Central Command posted on social media: “We are aware of reports claiming that the United States launched air strikes in Iraq today. Those reports are incorrect. The United States did not launch air strikes in Iraq today.”

In 2016, the Iraqi parliament passed a draft law recognizing the Popular Mobilization Units as a government entity operating alongside the Iraqi army. The organization is an umbrella group, under whose wing several forces operate – including Iraq's powerful Kataib Hezbollah.