2021 Erbil rocket attacks

2021 Erbil rocket attacks
Part of 2019–2021 Persian Gulf crisis
Location of Erbil
Location	Erbil, Kurdistan Region, Iraq
Date	15 February 2021, 9:30 p.m. (local time, UTC+3)
Target	Combined Joint Task Force – Operation Inherent Resolve
Attack type	Rocket attack
Deaths	1 U.S.-led coalition contractor dead[1] 1 Kurdish civilian dead Total: 2 [2]
Injured	5 contractors, 1 US soldier and 2 Kurdish civilians Total: 8 [3]
Perpetrator	Saraya Awliya al-Dam (claimed)
Motive	Opposition to the Combined Joint Task Force (CJTF)

The 2021 Erbil rocket attacks occurred when multiple rockets were launched against Erbil, the capital of the Kurdistan Region, Iraq. On 15 February, approximately fourteen rockets were fired from an area south of the city at around 21:30 local time. Three of the rockets directly hit the U.S.-led coalition base near Erbil International Airport, while the other rockets hit residential areas and civilian facilities near the airport. Two people were killed in the attack, and an additional 13 were injured, including an American service member.

The identity of the attackers was initially unclear, with Iraqi and American authorities launching an investigation to identify the perpetrators. A little-known Shiite armed group called Saraya Awliya al-Dam then claimed responsibility for the attack. Despite this, several Iraqi and Iraqi Kurdish officials and Western analysts blamed Iran and Iranian-backed militias for being behind the attack. Tensions between the U.S. and Iran had been high since the assassination of Qasem Soleimani, a high-ranking Iranian commander of the Quds Force, in January 2020. Iranian authorities denied and condemned the claims of its involvement in the attacks.

The attack was the worst and deadliest in a year on the U.S.-led military coalition in Iraq, and was the first time since late 2020 that Western military or diplomatic installations were targeted in the country. It was the most serious attack on the U.S.-led coalition since the Biden administration took power in January 2021 and sparked fears of escalation. Following the attack, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) announced that it would increase the size of its forces in Iraq from 500 to around 4,000 personnel. Another attack was carried out on the airport in April 2021.