Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi has claimed to know who carried out the 7th of November drone attack on his home while leading a cabinet meeting.
“We will pursue those who committed the crime. We know them well,” he told the group without elaborating any further.
What happened during the attack?
On Sunday the 7th of November, three remote-controlled drones were launched from the Republic Bridge on the River Tigris.
All three drones had been laden with explosives and while two were shot down before they could reach the high-security Baghdad government zone, one was able to reach the prime ministers home.
The drone struck the house and detonated, causing significant structural damage to the home and injuring six of the prime minister’s bodyguards.
So far no group has claimed responsibility for the attack but suspicion has fallen on Shia Muslim militias in the country who used Iranian-made drones and explosives.
The attack comes amid rising tensions in the region following its parliamentary election last month, in which the alliance of parties representing the Shia militias lost two-thirds of its elected seats.
The Fatah alliance has refused to accept the election results, leading to an increase in protests in Baghdad.
At least one person was killed when Fatah supporters demanding a recount clashed with security forces outside the fortified Green Zone before the attack.
In a video posted online hours after the attack, Mr Kadhimi said he escaped unhurt, although it seemed he had a bandage around his left wrist.
In an address to his cabinet, the prime minister said the assassination attempt was a “cowardly act” which did “not express the will of Iraqis”.
The Iraqi Prime Minister went on to say the government was vital in preventing the nation from “slipping into a regional war” since its formation after mass anti-government protests in late 2019, which saw the death of hundreds of civilians.
There has been a range of responses from global leaders and organisations to the attempted assassination.
Iraq’s President Barham Saleh called the attack on the PM an attempted coup.
Shia cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, who leads the nationalist alliance that won the most seats in the election, said those who carried out the attack aimed to “return Iraq to a state of chaos to be controlled by non-state forces”.
US President Joe Biden in a foreign address, said he condemned “those using violence to undermine Iraq’s democratic process” in the strongest terms.
The UN security council reiterated their support for the independence and democratic process of Iraq while repeating that terrorism in all its forms and manifestations constitutes one of the most severe threats to international peace and security.
Many of Iraq’s militias have developed significant military and political influence since helping Iraq’s government defeat the jihadist group Islamic State in 2017.
The attack demonstrates the continued escalation of rising political tensions in the region, with a growing conflict emerging between the government and independent militias.
Source
PM Mustafa Al-Kadhimi delivers a brief televised address to the Iraqi people: