At approximately 0430 local time, a suspected United States drone strike targeted a vehicle located west of Baghdad in an area along the Abu Ghairb highway..While the identity of the vehicle and its passengers remains unclear at this time, initial reports suggest that it is affiliated to Kataib Hezbollah, an Iran-backed Shia militia force in Iraq..Kataib Hezbollah is most notable for its involvement in the 2020 siege of the American embassy in Baghdad, which ultimately set off a chain of events that ended in the killing of IRGC General Qassam Soleimani and Iranian rocket barrage against American forces at the al-Asad Airbase..Over the next hour following the strike, a USAF AC-130J gunship was airborne over Ramadi and Abu Ghraib. The aircraft was visible on commercial ADSB systems, marking a very rare public showing of an aircraft usually involved in clandestine operations..The AC-130J sortie also coincided with other mixed reports of additional strikes and potential militia anti-aircraft gunfire, which could also be mistaken for fire from the gunship. However, it remains unknown and unconfirmed at this time if the AC-130J engaged any targets at all.
At approximately 0430 local time, a suspected United States drone strike targeted a vehicle located west of Baghdad in an area along the Abu Ghairb highway..While the identity of the vehicle and its passengers remains unclear at this time, initial reports suggest that it is affiliated to Kataib Hezbollah, an Iran-backed Shia militia force in Iraq..Kataib Hezbollah is most notable for its involvement in the 2020 siege of the American embassy in Baghdad, which ultimately set off a chain of events that ended in the killing of IRGC General Qassam Soleimani and Iranian rocket barrage against American forces at the al-Asad Airbase..Over the next hour following the strike, a USAF AC-130J gunship was airborne over Ramadi and Abu Ghraib. The aircraft was visible on commercial ADSB systems, marking a very rare public showing of an aircraft usually involved in clandestine operations..The AC-130J sortie also coincided with other mixed reports of additional strikes and potential militia anti-aircraft gunfire, which could also be mistaken for fire from the gunship. However, it remains unknown and unconfirmed at this time if the AC-130J engaged any targets at all.
