Drone shot down near Iraqi airport hosting US troops: Security forces - Region
"At 21:58 (1858 GMT) an explosive-packed drone was downed near Arbil International Airport, without causing casualties or damage," said the counterterrorism services of the Kurdistan region.
Arbil airport, which includes a military base of the international anti-jihadist coalition, was a frequent target in previous years for rocket and drone attacks.
A US defence official told AFP "we are aware of an explosion from a UAV that occurred outside of the airbase in Arbil", adding that the "incident is under investigation".
"All US personnel are accounted for and there were no injuries or damage to the base or US assets in the area," he said.
Dana Tofeek, the airport's interim director, told AFP that the facility is "safe", adding that "only one flight was slightly delayed due to security measures".
There has been no claim of responsibility for the drone attack.
In the past days, drone and rocket attacks have been reported in different parts of Iraq, including drones that landed in open spaces.
Earlier on Thursday, an explosive-packed drone fell near Kirkuk airport, which was struck on Monday by two rockets, a senior security official told AFP.
Kirkuk airport hosts Iraqi army units, federal police and the Hashed al-Shaabi, a coalition of pro-Iran former paramilitary forces now integrated into the regular armed forces.
Early on Tuesday, Iraq's anti-aircraft defence engaged at least one drone near the key refinery of Baiji in Salaheddin province.
Last week, hours before a ceasefire ended the 12-day Iran-Israel war, unidentified drones struck radar systems at two military bases, in Baghdad and southern Iraq.
Iraq has long been a battleground of drone and rocket assaults and proved a fertile ground for proxy wars.
The country has only recently regained a semblance of stability after decades of devastating conflicts and turmoil.
Follow us on:
Short link:
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Egypt Independent
an hour ago
- Egypt Independent
Denmark has long been Euroskeptic. Donald Trump helped change that
CNN — As Denmark takes over the presidency of the European Union, Danes are more strongly pro-European than at any time in the past two decades – a shift in sentiment that can at least partly be attributed to US President Donald Trump. An eye-opening survey published in March by Berlingske, a Danish daily newspaper, said 41 percent of Danes now see the United States as a threat. It also said 92 percent of respondents either 'agree' or 'mostly agree' that the Nordic nation needs to rely more on the European Union than the US for its security. Given the recent tensions between Washington and Copenhagen, those statistics may not be surprising. Since his return to the White House, Trump has spoken frequently and aggressively about Greenland, an autonomous crown dependency of Denmark, saying he would like the US to own it. Vice President JD Vance and members of the Trump family have made what many see as provocative trips to and statements about the world's largest island. After Vance's visit to the US military's Pituffik Space Base in Greenland in March, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen pushed back on his claim that Denmark isn't doing enough for defense in the Arctic, calling her country 'a good and strong ally.' Back in Trump's first administration, too, Greenland was a hot topic. In 2019, he reportedly accused Frederiksen of making a 'nasty' and 'absurd' statement in discussions about the island. US Vice President JD Vance (second right) and second lady Usha Vance (second left) tour the US military's Pituffik Space Base, on March 28, 2025 in Pituffik, trust in Trump Lykke Friis, a prominent Danish international affairs analyst and a former minister, told CNN that the country has experienced 'a triple shock' that includes the war in Ukraine and the departure of the United Kingdom from the EU, known as Brexit. The biggest shock, however, has come in the form of Trump. 'Now we have a different Denmark,' she said. Speaking to CNN from Copenhagen, Marie Bjerre, the Danish minister for European affairs, conveyed a similar message – that the second Trump administration has changed Danish perspectives toward both the US and the European Union. 'Things have dramatically changed in Denmark and our attitude toward Europe,' she said, without mentioning the president's name directly. US President Donald Trump, left, walks by Denmark's Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen prior to a group photo of NATO heads of state and government in The Hague, Netherlands, on June 25, 2025. Geert Vanden Wijngaert/AP She was also very clear that Denmark feels a sense of disappointment in its longtime ally. Denmark would still like to have a strong relationship with the US, Bjerre said, 'but in a situation where the US is closing itself more around itself… is threatening us with tariffs and also criticizing Europe, our freedom of expression and all sorts of other things. Of course, in that situation, we have to be stronger on our own.' She added, 'The world order, as we have known it since the Second World War, is changing and we have to deliver to that geopolitical new situation that we are standing in.' The minister also referenced the historic ties and shared past experiences of both nations, expressing a degree of frustration, if not anger, about how that relationship has changed. 'You could not put a paper in between the US and Denmark, we have always supported the US. We went into war with our soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan… Seeing us, as a country, being criticized for not being a good ally, of course, that does affect our opinion,' Bjerre said. Per capita, Denmark lost the second-highest number of soldiers of all the US-led coalition partners fighting in Afghanistan. In total, 43 Danish soldiers died, equating to 7.82 deaths per million citizens. The US, by comparison, lost 7.96 soldiers per million. 'We used to be a very, very transatlantic country… that has plummeted,' said Friis. 'There is now the feeling… we simply cannot trust him,' she said – the 'him' being Trump. 'Huge' change in tone The shift in Danes' opinions coincides with Denmark taking up the rotating, six-month EU presidency. Historically, the southernmost Scandinavian nation has tended to be Euroskeptic, Friis told CNN, never feeling European at heart. She described it as sustaining a transactional relationship with Brussels, based on 'pragmatic co-operation.' Denmark has long worried about the EU wading into Danes' lives, fearing in particular for its relatively unregulated labor market. It has various opt-outs on EU policy, including not joining the EU's single currency, the euro. 'We do things differently to other European nations,' said Bjerre. Politicians and citizens used to fear that the EU 'would become too dominating and too powerful,' Friis said, but now 'the fear is the complete opposite.' Danes feel the bloc is 'too weak' to deal with Putin to the East and Trump to the West, she said. Friis also described the prime minister's shift in tone as 'huge,' saying Frederiksen used to be 'very skeptical towards the EU.' In June, Frederiksen announced that Denmark was quitting the so-called 'Frugal Four,' an informal group of EU nations that had pushed to limit common spending, saying that 'the most important thing is to rearm Europe.' Laying out Denmark's priorities for the EU presidency later that month, she reiterated that view, saying: 'Now more than ever Europe needs to step up and stand together. We have to build an even stronger Europe, a more secure Europe where we are able to protect our democracies.' EU-commissioned, biannual polls show a clear trend of increased trust in the EU over the past two decades, rising from 46 percent in spring 2005 to 74 percent this past spring. Steeper increases can be seen during Trump's first term, after Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, and as Trump's second term began. The war in Ukraine has had a significant influence on Danish views on the EU, Friis said. 'The very fact that you had a war in our backyard has sort of created a completely new sort of atmosphere around security in Denmark, people are worried. People are prepping now because they're scared about what could happen also to our own security,' she said. Bjerre said Copenhagen's EU presidency would prioritize a 'stronger Europe and a changing world,' with Europe having a real focus on security. Denmark takes the European helm, then, at a time of increasingly pro-European sentiment among its own population and a wider recognition in Europe that it must do more to stand on its own. The problem is that some of Europe's most pressing issues – Ukraine, trade tariffs and security – mean talking to the US and Trump. And at the moment, there may not be much love lost between the two.
Egypt Independent
an hour ago
- Egypt Independent
Russia welcomes Trump's cut to Ukraine's military aid but it could be deadly for Kyiv
CNN — The reactions to the Trump administration's decision to The reactions to the Trump administration's decision to pause some weapons shipments to Ukraine couldn't be more illustrative of the conflict: welcomed by the Kremlin, branded 'inhumane' by Kyiv. The Pentagon said on Wednesday that it was pausing some aid because it needs to review whether the assistance that is provided to Ukraine is aligned with US President Donald Trump's 'America First' agenda. But the move could have deadly consequences for Ukraine as the halt on shipments includes missiles for Patriots, the US-made air defense systems that are currently protecting millions of Ukrainian civilians from Russia's increasingly massive daily aerial attacks. Kyiv endured the biggest ever attack overnight into Friday, with 13 dreadful hours of explosions and buzzing overhead as Russia launched a record 539 drones towards the Ukrainian capital and 11 cruise and ballistic missiles, according to the country's air force. As the smoke began to clear over the city, Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky praised the military for shooting down or jamming the majority of the Russian drones and missiles. 'It is critically important that our partners continue to support us in defending against ballistic missiles. Patriots and the missiles for them are true protectors of life,' he said – a remark clearly aimed at trying to persuade Trump to reconsider the pause. Zelensky got a chance to make the case directly to Trump when the two spoke by phone on Friday. A readout of the call from Zelensky's office said the two leaders 'agreed that we will work together to strengthen protection of our skies.' 'We are ready for direct projects with the United States and believe this is critically important for security, especially when it comes to drones and related technologies,' the readout said. No other air defense system can match the Patriots in its effectiveness – but their power comes at a huge cost, their production is limited and the demand for them is growing rapidly around the world, especially in areas deemed by the Trump administration to be more strategically important – such as the Middle East or, southwest Asia and South Korea. A Patriot system received by Ukraine is seen on the Day of Ukrainian Air Force on August 4, 2024. Vitalii Nosach/Global'Inhumane' decision The announcement by the US sent shockwaves through Ukraine, with presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak saying it would be 'very strange' and 'inhumane' to stop supplying missiles that are used to protect civilians. But despite the panicked reaction, the move was not entirely unexpected. Trump has threatened to withdraw Ukraine's support in a bid to force Kyiv to the negotiating table, and he has previously briefly paused shipments of aid. While the US was for a long time Ukraine's biggest supporter, singlehandedly covering about 40 percent of Ukraine's military needs, it has not announced any new aid to Ukraine since early January, when Trump returned to power. Meanwhile, European countries have stepped up their support of Ukraine. According to the German Kiel Institute, which monitors aid to Ukraine, Europe has now surpassed the US as the biggest donor – having supported Ukraine to the tune of 72 billion euro ($85 billion) in total military aid since the start of the full-scale invasion to the end of April, compared to 65 billion euro ($76.6 billion) from the US. But the numbers don't tell the whole story. 'Ukraine has a lot of different needs, and some of them can be filled by other suppliers, but some can only be filled by the United States,' Daniel Byman, director of the Warfare, Irregular Threats, and Terrorism Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), told CNN. 'For ballistic missiles in particular, only the US can provide this. A cut off in those leaves a huge gap in Ukraine and air defenses. And given the kind of daily and horrible Russian attacks, that's very consequential.' Russia has ramped up its airborne attacks against Ukraine in recent weeks. Ballistic missiles pose the deadliest threat and, according to Ukrainian officials, Russia fired as many as 80 of these in June alone. Rescuers work at the site of a Russian missile strike on a residential building during an attack in Kyiv, Ukraine, on June 23. Maxym Marusenko/NurPhoto/Getty Images While Ukraine managed to shoot some of them down, likely with the Patriot system, the ones that slipped through caused unimaginable suffering. One ballistic missile strike killed 21 people in Dnipro last week. The week before that, 21 people were killed when a ballistic missile hit an apartment building in Kyiv. Deadly attacks like this will become more frequent if Ukraine loses access to the Patriots, which are widely considered to be among the best air defense systems available. They are capable of bringing down cruise and hypersonic missiles, short-range ballistic missiles and aircraft. According to analysts, the Ukrainian military has been using them in an extremely effective way, shooting down missiles that Moscow claimed were impossible to intercept, such as the Kinzhal ballistic missiles. At an estimated cost of about $1.1 billion for each system, the Patriots are by far the most expensive piece of equipment sent by allies to Ukraine. According to the CSIS, missile rounds for the Patriot come in at roughly $4 million each – an incredibly high price tag. But even if Ukraine had the cash to purchase these systems, which it doesn't, it would find it difficult to source them. 'The production pace of Patriot missiles is low. Not because the US doesn't want to produce more, but because it's very sophisticated – you can't produce thousands a year, you can produce hundreds and you have allies all over the world who need them,' Pavel Luzin, a senior fellow at the Centre for European Policy Analysis, said Thursday during a discussion at the NEST Center, a think tank. Lockheed Martin, which manufactures the Patriot missiles for the US Army, has been ramping up production to record levels – but even so, it is only able to make just over 500 per year, with a plan to increase production to 650 a year by 2027. A major $5.5 billion deal between US and German companies to begin manufacturing the Patriot missiles outside of the US for the first time was approved last year following a NATO order of up to 1,000 rounds – but the first deliveries are not expected until several years from now. President Volodymyr Zelensky finds out about the training of Ukrainian soldiers on the Patriot anti-aircraft missile system at an undisclosed location in Germany, on June 11, 2024. Jens Buttner/Reuters Germany, which has donated several of its Patriot systems to Ukraine in the past, is looking into the option of purchasing some missiles for Ukraine from the US, the spokesperson for the German government said in a news conference on Friday. Sidharth Kaushal, a senior research fellow at the Royal United Services Institute, a UK-based defense think tank, said that while global stockpiles of Patriot missiles are not 'critically low,' there are some grounds for concern about shortages. 'The requirement for Patriots, particularly in the Indo-Pacific, is growing significantly,' he said. He said that given that some of the missiles initially meant for Ukraine were diverted to other allies, including Israel, it was likely that the US wanted to – or even had contractual obligations to – deliver interceptors to countries who are, in some cases, located within range of Iranian missiles. Still, Kaushal said the US itself is highly unlikely to face any kind of urgent shortage of missiles. 'While the US has sent a considerable number of Patriot interceptors to Ukraine it has replenished stocks through buy-back schemes from Japan and more recent shipments were diverted from export customers rather than the US' own inventory,' he said in a note emailed to CNN. Boost for Ukraine Zelensky said previously that Ukraine would need some 25 Patriot batteries to defend its airspace effectively. It has roughly half a dozen at the moment, although the exact numbers and their locations are closely guarded secrets. What is known, though, is that the Ukrainians are very worried about running out of the munitions – especially because the latest US pause doesn't concern future aid but impacts deliveries that have been approved and funded and were on their way to Ukraine, where the military was counting on receiving them in the very near future. 'One thing is not having future sales approved; another is stopping what is already in the pipeline. And so that's a very negative shift that is harmful for the future defense of Ukraine and the effect is going to be pretty quick. The Russian attacks are happening daily, and Ukraine relies on these systems to counter them,' Byman said. The pause in shipments is likely to give yet another boost to Russia. 'It's part of (the Russians') strategy. They believe that without the US support, Ukraine is more likely to collapse or at least make concessions… so it certainly increases the incentives for Russia to keep military pressure on Ukraine,' Byman said. The Institute for the Study of War (ISW), a US-based conflict monitor, said that previous delays in deliveries of aid to Ukraine have invariably accelerated Russian gains on the battlefield. When the US dragged its feet on military aid in late 2023 and early 2024, Russia pushed forward in Avdiivka in eastern Ukraine. When the US paused intelligence sharing with Ukraine in March, Russian forces advanced in Kursk. 'The suspension of US aid to Ukraine will reinforce Russian President Vladimir Putin's theory of victory that posits that Russia can win the war of attrition by making slow, creeping advances and outlasting Western support for Ukraine,' the ISW said. The pause in shipments will likely reinforce Putin's belief that time is on Russia's side – and that if he can delay negotiations for long enough, his troops will eventually outlast Western assistance to Ukraine. For Ukrainians, who have sacrificed so much trying to defend their country against a bigger, stronger aggressor, the absence of US military aid is not just yet another setback – it's potentially a disaster.
Al-Ahram Weekly
2 hours ago
- Al-Ahram Weekly
Gaza civil defence says 20 killed in Israeli operations - War on Gaza
Gaza's civil defence agency said Israeli military operations killed 20 people across the war-battered territory on Saturday, after nearly 21 months of war. Israel has recently expanded its military operations in the Gaza Strip, where the war has created dire humanitarian conditions for the Palestinian territory's population of more than two million. Media restrictions in Gaza and difficulties in accessing many areas mean AFP is unable to independently verify the tolls and details provided by the civil defence agency. Civil defence spokesman Mahmud Bassal said five of the dead were killed in a strike on a school in Gaza City. A second strike near another school in the city, where displaced civilians had found shelter, killed three people and wounded around 10, including children, he said. Many Gazans have sought shelter in schools and other public buildings since the war began with Hamas's October 2023 attack on Israel. Contacted by AFP, the Israeli military said it could not comment on specific attacks without precise coordinates. The latest strikes came hours after Hamas said it was ready to start talks "immediately" on a US-sponsored proposal for a Gaza ceasefire. The proposal came ahead of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's departure for talks on Monday in Washington, where US President Donald Trump has intensified calls for an end to the war. Israel said Saturday it was still mulling its response to a positive reaction from Hamas to the latest US-sponsored proposal for a Gaza ceasefire. "No decision has been made yet on that issue," a government official told AFP on condition of anonymity as they were not authorised to speak publicly about it. Israel's security cabinet was due to meet later on Saturday, after the end of the Jewish sabbath at sundown, Israeli media reported. Israel's genocidal war began in October 2023, has killed more than 57,000 people in Gaza, mostly civilians, according to Gaza's health ministry. The United Nations considers its figures reliable. Follow us on: Facebook Instagram Whatsapp Short link:
