After three rockets slammed into the US embassy in Baghdad on Sunday in the first direct hit reported after months of close calls, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Monday urged Iraqi Prime Minister Adil Abdel Mahdi to uphold his country’s “sovereignty” in the face of “attacks” from Iran on US facilities in Iraq.
Pompeo “expressed his outrage at the continued assaults by Iran’s armed groups against US facilities in Iraq, including yesterday’s rocket attacks against our Embassy, which resulted in one injury,” the State Department said in a statement.
None of the attacks have been claimed but Washington has repeatedly blamed Iran-backed military factions in Iraq. On Sunday, one rocket hit an embassy cafeteria at dinner time while two others landed nearby, news agency AFP reported.
The statement said that “these attacks demonstrate a wanton disregard for Iraqi sovereignty and a failure to rein in these dangerous armed groups.” Pompeo said on Twitter that “the government of #Iraq must take immediate steps to protect our diplomatic facilities as required by international law.”
As I emphasized in our conversation, the Government of #Iraq must take immediate steps to protect our diplomatic facilities as required by international law.
— Secretary Pompeo (@SecPompeo) January 27, 2020
Since the US assassinated Iran’s Quds Force leader General Qasem Suleimani and Iraqi military figure Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis earlier this month in Baghdad, Iraq has become the battleground for both Iran and the US. Iran was prompted to fire ballistic missiles at an Iraqi base where US troops are stationed.