Western troops were targeted in a drone attack last night with several US service members believed to have been injured. The attack, suspected to have been launched from Iran, hit Iraqi cities on Wednesday night – striking bases in Erbil and Baghdad.
Lieutenant General Nick Perry, Chief of Joint Operations tasked with command of global operations, confirmed the attack on the base in Erbil which contains British personnel helping to defend it. He confirmed that British forces had managed to shoot down two UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles) but that others had hit the base.
He told Defence Secretary John Healey in a highly staged briefing in front of media: « We are also doing some really important work in Iraq.
« As mentioned, both Erbil and Baghdad were struck a number of times last night, and we are seeing increasing coordination in those attacks.
« We have personnel in Erbil who are currently helping with the defence of the base.
« Last night they shot down two UAVs approaching the camp. A number of other UAVs did impact the camp, but there were no British casualties. Their operations have therefore been fairly continuous since the situation began. »
Brigadier Guy Foden added that the UK had flown air combat patrols over Jordan and the United Arab Emirates, along with a “number of sorties” over Qatar, as he confirmed that British pilots had logged 300 hours of flights since the conflict began.
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