UPDATE (1:23 p.m. EST):
Reporters in the Middle East are sharing the first pictures and videos of the attack.
Pictures of rocket fire hit Baghdad's al-Jadariya district. pic.twitter.com/4MvA0yH75T
— ??DH?? (@D43SHHUNT3R) January 4, 2020
#BREAKING
— Abdullah Cheema (@AB_cheema) January 4, 2020
Numerous U.S. helicopters in the air over Baghdad, Iraq.
Sky News reporter: Rocket hits Baghdad's Green Zone. Entrance to the U.S. Embassy closed.pic.twitter.com/N4uiKEIAcJ
ORIGINAL POST
As the funeral for Qasem Soleimani began Saturday, two blasts were heard throughout Baghdad. It turns out that a rocket attack took place on the heavily fortified Green Zone which houses the United States embassy, The Jerusalem Post reported.
According to Reuters, the Iraqi military revealed that the rockets also fell in the city's Jadriya neighborhood and the Balad air base, which houses American troops.
“Several rockets targeting Celebration Square and the Jadriya area in Baghdad, and the Balad air base in Salahuddin province, with no loss of life. Further details to come,” the Iraqi military said in a statement.
#BREAKING: three rocket hit al-Balad military air base — al-Sumariya.
— Baxtiyar Goran (@BaxtiyarGoran) January 4, 2020
The base hosts US forces and is located about 80 kilometers north of Baghdad. #Iraq pic.twitter.com/tBNzFxc0vs
Recommended
#BREAKING
— Heshmat Alavi (@HeshmatAlavi) January 4, 2020
Reports indicate missile/rocket landing in Baghdad's heavily fortified Green Zone, inside the U.S. Embassy vicinity.
Reuters witness says major explosion heard. pic.twitter.com/uJWL8kFhiw
The embassy on Friday urged all Americans to leave Iraq immediately
“Due to heightened tensions in Iraq and the region, the U.S. Embassy urges American citizens to heed the January 2020 Travel Advisory and depart Iraq immediately. U.S. citizens should depart via airline while possible, and failing that, to other countries via land,” it said in a statement.
This is a breaking news story. As more information comes in this post will be updated.
Join the conversation as a VIP Member