Iraqi Prime Minister Orders For Investigation Into Baghdad Missile Strike - Military

BAGHDAD (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 29th September, 2020) Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kadhimi has ordered for an urgent investigation into the deadly airstrike on a civilian area near the Baghdad airport, the Iraqi Joint Forces Command said in a press release, obtained by Sputnik, on Monday.

Earlier in the day, Al Arabiya reported that a Katyusha rocket fell in a residential area near the Baghdad International Airport, killing seven people. An Iraqi security sources told Sputnik the perpetrators had targeted the airport. The source also said there were children among those killed by the strike.

"The prime minister has ordered for an immediate launch of an investigation into the strike and prosecution of perpetrators regardless of their affiliation and links," the press release of the Iraqi military read.

According to the text, "a criminal network" fired two rockets from the Jihad district east from the airport which completely destroyed a residential house in the Ridvaniyeh district south from the airport.

Five people were killed as a result, including two women and three children, according to the press release.

Such rockets strikes in what is known as the "green zone" around the Baghdad airport are commonplace as it attracts militants' attention due to hosting numerous government institutions and embassies as well as a military airport. However, such attacks rarely result in civilian casualties.