The US embassy in the Iraqi capital Baghdad was hit by a rocket on Saturday, hitting the compound, sending smoke billowing from the building.
An Iraqi security source told Al Jazeera that the attack damaged part of the embassy’s air defense system, although no further details were given on the exact damage.
The rocket hit a helicopter landing pad inside the embassy, two security officials told The Associated Press. The rocket landed inside the compound in the heavily fortified Green Zone, which is in central Baghdad and is home to Iraqi government buildings and foreign embassies.
There was no immediate comment from the US embassy in Baghdad, and it was unclear if there were any casualties or damage.
Videos posted on social media showed smoke billowing from the compound after the attack. Al Jazeera’s Mahmoud Abdul Wahid, reporting for Al Jazeera from Baghdad, said the exact number of casualties or injuries had not yet been announced.
However, he said that armed groups with Iranian links operating in Iraq had already planned to attack US facilities and interests, especially the embassy in Baghdad. The groups said they were avenging the assassination of former Iranian leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was reportedly killed along with members of his family in a US-Israeli airstrike at the start of the Middle East war.
The groups also reportedly recently announced a $100,000 reward for information on US diplomats in Iraq. Some embassy staff are said to be taking shelter in civilian homes.
The attack marks the second time the US embassy in Baghdad has been targeted since the start of the war in the region. On Friday, the embassy raised its security alert to the highest level of Level Four, warning US citizens of the potential threat from Iran and its proxies.
The US embassy in Baghdad, one of the world’s largest diplomatic compounds, has been the target of several rocket and drone attacks in the past.
