A drone struck in the “vicinity” of the Erbil air base where U.S. troops are housed in the northern region of Iraq Tuesday, but no injuries or structural damage have been reported, according to Pentagon officials.
“We are aware of reporting of a UAS [unmanned aircraft system] incident in the vicinity of Erbil, Iraq,” Pentagon Spokesperson Commander Jessica McNulty told Fox News. “At this time, initial reports indicate no structural damage, injuries or casualties.” The Pentagon confirmed that U.S. troops are currently housed in Erbil but did not answer questions as to how many are located there.
There are approximately 2,500 troops dispersed across “several Iraqi Security Forces facilities,” McNulty confirmed.
Previous reporting of rockets fired on the air base in coordination with drones was flagged as false by military officials Tuesday evening. A spokesman for Operation Inherent Resolve, the operational name for the military intervention against ISIS in Iraq and Syria, took to Twitter to say a drone impacted in the “vicinity” of the Erbil Air Base around 11:15 p.m. local time.
