两名伊拉克高级民兵官员和伊朗革命卫队圣城部队负责人在巴格达国际机场附近的美国无人驾驶飞机袭击中丧生，这似乎是该国一周动乱和流血事件后的最新升级。
伊拉克国家支持的人民动员部队礼宾负责人穆罕默德·雷德哈·贾布里于周四“与陪同他的三名客人”被杀害哈希算法，告诉新闻周刊。该组织最初否认了民众动员部队副指挥官阿布·迈赫迪·穆汉迪也有伤亡的传言，称他“身体健康，目前在巴格达的住所”
五角大楼一名高级官员随后证实新闻周刊穆汉迪和圣城部队指挥官卡西姆·索莱马尼确实被杀，等待很有可能确定这两个人为目标的脱氧核糖核酸结果。
不久之后，人民动员部队证实新闻周刊“哈希德副主席哈吉·阿布·迈赫迪·穆汉迪和圣城部队指挥官卡西姆·苏莱曼尼在美国袭击巴格达国际机场道路上的车辆时遇难。”
周四早些时候，伊拉克军方的安全媒体小组报道称，“三枚卡秋莎火箭落在巴格达国际机场，靠近航空货运站，摧毁了两辆汽车，炸伤了一些平民。”
该牢房随后公布了四张照片，照片显示烧毁的汽车起火。
1月2日，伊拉克安全媒体小组共享的一张照片显示，汽车残骸显然是在巴格达国际机场附近被火箭击中的。
就在这一事件发生的前一天，愤怒的人群结束了对华盛顿驻巴格达大使馆为期两天的包围，一群大多是年轻人的人焚烧和破坏了建筑，以抗议五角大楼周日袭击卡塔伊卜真主党的阵地，卡塔伊卜真主党是伊朗支持的什叶派穆斯林民兵，是民众动员部队的一部分，杀死了多达27名战士。
美国的罢工是对无人认领的卡秋莎的回应火箭攻击星期五，在伊拉克北部基尔库克的k1空军基地，一名美国国防承包商丧生，美国和伊拉克人员受伤。
美国指责伊朗对周五的火箭袭击负责，并认为卡塔伊卜真主党和其他一些民众动员部队受伊朗指挥。然而，伊拉克政府强烈谴责美国的袭击，因为这些袭击不是与巴格达协调进行的，巴格达认为自己是华盛顿和德黑兰的合作伙伴。
美国和伊朗双方都支持伊拉克在与伊斯兰国激进组织的战斗中，但随着圣战分子被击败，唐纳德·特朗普总统退出了2015年与伊朗和世界主要大国的核协议，这两个长期对手之间的关系再次破裂。自2018年退出后，白宫对伊斯兰共和国实施了越来越严厉的制裁，指责其资助激进组织，并寻求破坏稳定的导弹开发。
然而，所谓的“最大压力”战略也导致更多的美国军队部署到该地区，因为华盛顿指责德黑兰袭击波斯湾的油轮、沙特的石油设施以及与五角大楼在伊拉克的存在有关的基地。伊朗否认其在这些事件中的作用，以及在美国大使馆前的新年示威。
这篇文章已经更新，包括人民动员部队和五角大楼一名高级官员对人民动员部队负责人穆罕默德·雷德哈·贾巴尔议定书、副主席阿布·迈赫迪·穆汉迪和伊朗圣城部队指挥官卡西姆·苏莱曼尼死亡的确认。
IRAQ MILITIA OFFICIALS, IRAN'S QUDS FORCE HEAD KILLED IN U.S. DRONE STRIKE
Two senior Iraqi militia officials and the head of Iran's Revolutionary Guards Quds Force has been killed in a U.S. drone strike near Baghdad International Airport in what appeared to be the latest escalation following a week of unrest and bloodshed across the country.
Mohammed Redha al-Jabri, head of protocol of Iraq's state-sponsored Popular Mobilization Forces, was killed Thursday "along with three guests accompanying him," the Popular Mobilization Forces, also known as Al-Hashed Al-Shaabi, told Newsweek. The group initially denied rumors that Popular Mobilization Forces deputy commander Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis was also killed or injured, saying he was "well and currently in his residence in Baghdad."
A senior Pentagon official then confirmed to Newsweek that Muhandis was indeed killed, along with Quds Force commander Qassem Soleimani, pending DNA results that had a "high probability" of identifying the two men as the targets.
Shortly after, the Popular Mobilization Forces confirmed to Newsweek "the martyrdom of deputy head of Al-Hashed, Haj Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis and Quds Force commander Qassem Soleimani in an American strike that targeted their vehicles on the road of Baghdad International Airport."
Earlier Thursday, the Iraqi military's Security Media Cell reported that "three Katyusha rockets fell on Baghdad International Airport, near the air cargo terminal, destroying two vehicles and wounding a number of civilians."
The cell then released four photos appearing destroyed cars in flames.
A photo shared by Iraq's Security Media Cell shows the wreckage of car apparently struck by rocket near Baghdad International Airport, January 2.
The incident comes just a day after an angry crowd ended a two-day siege of Washington's embassy in Baghdad, where a group of mostly young men burned and vandalized structures in protest of the Pentagon's targeting Sunday of positions of Kataib Hezbollah, an Iran-backed Shiite Muslim militia that was part of the Popular Mobilization Forces, killing up to 27 fighters.
The U.S. strikes came in response to an unclaimed Katyusha rocket attack Friday that killed a U.S. defense contractor and injured U.S. and Iraqi personnel at the K-1 Air Base in Kirkuk, northern Iraq.
The U.S. has blamed Iran for Friday's rocket attack and considers Kataib Hezbollah and a number of other Popular Mobilization Forces units to be under Iranian command. The Iraqi government, however, deeply condemned the U.S. strikes as they were not done in coordination with Baghdad, which considers itself a partner of both Washington and Tehran.
The U.S. and Iran both supported Iraq in the battle against the Islamic State militant group (ISIS), but relations between the longstanding rivals have again fallen out as the jihadis were defeated and President Donald Trump pulled out of a 2015 nuclear deal with Iran and major world powers. The White House has since the 2018 exit imposed increasingly strict sanctions on the Islamic Republic, accusing it of funding militant groups and pursuing destabilizing missile development.
The so-called "maximum pressure" strategy, however, has also seen additional U.S. troops deployed to the region as Washington blamed Tehran for attacks on oil tankers in the Persian Gulf, Saudi oil facilities and bases associated with the Pentagon's presence in Iraq. Iran has denied its role in these events, as well as the New Year's demonstrations in front of the U.S. embassy.
This article has been updated to include confirmations from both the Popular Mobilization Forces and a senior Pentagon official of the deaths of Popular Mobilization Forces head of protocol Mohammed Redha al-Jabar, deputy chairman Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis and Iranian Quds Force commander Qassem Soleimani.
