U.S. troops fired tear gas on Wednesday to disperse pro-Iran protesters who were gathered outside the U.S. Embassy compound in Baghdad for a second day.
U.S. troops fired tear gas on Wednesday as Iran-backed militiamen and other protesters gathered outside the American Embassy in Baghdad for a second day set fire to the roof of a reception area inside the embassy compound.
Later, Iraqi soldiers, federal police and elite counterterrorism forces deployed along the fence between the protesters and the compound. There was no friction between the security forces and the demonstrators.The Popular Mobilization Forces, an umbrella group of state-allied militias, issued a statement calling on its supporters to withdraw from the compound in response to an appeal by the Iraqi government, saying “your message has been received.
The militiamen were protesting deadly U.S. airstrikes that targeted an Iran-backed militia over the weekend, killing 25 fighters. Those strikes were in response to a rocket attack on an Iraqi army base that killed a U.S. contractor.The embassy, on the banks of the Tigris River in the government district known as the Green Zone, is the largest U.S. diplomatic mission in the world and one of the most heavily fortified.
Iran has denied any involvement in the attack on the embassy. Foreign Ministry spokesman Abbas Mousavi was quoted by state media on Tuesday as warning the U.S. against any “miscalculation” in the worsening standoff. Iran later summoned the Swiss charge d’affaires, who represents American interests in Tehran, to protest what it said was warmongering by U.S. officials, the state-run IRNA news agency reported.
The political influence of the Iran-backed militias, known as the Popular Mobilization Forces, has risen in recent years, and their allies dominate the parliament and the government. That has made them the target of mass protests since October that are unrelated to the attack on the embassy.
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