Five Rockets Hit US Embassy in Iraq Capital

By Staff, Agencies

The US embassy in Baghdad's heavily fortified Green Zone came under attack from rocket fire on Sunday evening.

Five rockets crashed into a riverbank near the embassy in the Iraqi capital without causing any injuries, the US Joint Operations Command said in a statement, but AFP news agency citing a security source said three of the rockets "directly hit the US embassy". One slammed into a cafeteria at dinner time, it added.

It was the third such attack on the US embassy this month but was the first time the complex had been directly hit. It was not immediately clear who was responsible.

Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi swiftly condemned the attack in a statement, calling it an "aggression" that could "drag Iraq into becoming a war zone".

In a statement, the United States urged Iraq to protect the embassy.

"We call on the Government of Iraq to fulfill its obligations to protect our diplomatic facilities," a State Department spokesperson said in a statement.