Iraqi militia claims drone attack on Jordan in support of Iran

An Iraqi militia announced on Wednesday that it bombed a "vital target" in Jordan, in retaliation for joint US-Israel strikes that killed the late Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Saturday.

The attack marks the first such operation claimed by Saraya Awliya al-Dam, a pro-Iran, Iraqi armed group which comes under the 'Coordination of Iraqi Resistance' umbrella.

"Our mujahideen carried out an attack on Wednesday with a swarm of drones targeting a vital target in Jordan," the group said in a statement on a Telegram channel affiliated with it.

"[This was carried out] in fulfilment of our religious duty and in retaliation for the blood of the wali of Allah, the martyred leader Imam Sayyid Ali al-Husseini Khamenei, and in deterrence of the aggression that led to the martyrdom of a group of Iraqi resistance youth."

The statement was accompanied by video footage showing the moment the drones appeared to be launched from a desert area, possibly near the Iraqi border city of Rutbah, close to Jordan.

It comes two days after Kataeb Hezbollah claimed that aircraft and drones were launched from US military bases inside Jordan to carry out attacks targeting armed groups in Iraq, a claim that the Jordanian Armed Forces categorically denied.

Iraqi political and security expert, Ahmed al-Nuaimi, said this was an "act of aggression" no different to those being carried out by Iran.

"The current operations are not being launched from any land-based military base or facility in the region, but rather from bases located within the Israeli-occupied territories or from warships and aircraft carriers," he told The New Arab.

 "The ‘Saraya Awliya al-Dam’ faction is merely a front for Kataeb Hezbollah, used to carry out operations that are embarrassing to the Iraqi government. It created this name to escape internal pressure and manoeuvre, but the reality is that the name is nothing more than a cover for Kataeb Hezbollah, which is likely to escalate its attacks outside Iraq and not just within its borders."

The latest developments come after the US and Israel launched extensive strikes on Iran on Saturday, killing many leaders and commanders, as well as civilians.

In retaliation, Iran has continued to target US bases across the region, including in the UAE, Qatar and Saudi Arabia.