[54550] Report: Israel established a secret base in Iraq to support the campaign against Iran
[54550] Report: Israel established a secret base in Iraq to support the campaign against Iran
According to an investigation by the Wall Street Journal, Israel operated a special forces base in the western desert of Iraq, and even attacked Iraqi forces that nearly exposed the activity.
Disclosure of an Israeli military base on Iraqi soil
According to a report by the Wall Street Journal, which has gained widespread traction across various Telegram channels, Israel established a secret military base in the western desert of Iraq before the outbreak of the war with Iran. According to the report, the base served as a logistics hub and a staging area for Air Force search and rescue teams, with the knowledge and coordination of the United States.
Amir Tsarfati notes that the base enabled operational activity at a distance of about 1,000 miles from the border, while WarFront Witness (which takes a critical stance toward Israel and the U.S.) explains that the move "brings Iran into Israel's first circle of threat" instead of the "third circle." The base was nearly exposed last March after a local shepherd noticed unusual helicopter activity and summoned Iraqi forces to the area.
According to Rerum Novarum, Iraqi forces from the Karbala Battalion attempted to investigate the suspicious activity, and in response, the Israeli Air Force conducted airstrikes to drive them away, which led to the death of an Iraqi soldier and the wounding of the battalion commander. Amit Segal reinforces the details and notes that it was a special forces base that served as a central axis for attacks. Abu Ali Express in English raises questions regarding censorship in Israel and the source of the leak, while noting the fact that the reporter who published the investigation is a former Israeli journalist.
Jewish Truth Archive, a channel that criticizes U.S. and Israeli policy in the Middle East, claims that the affair proves the "weakening of Iraq" following the wars of the last decades, which allows Israel to operate on its territory without interference. At the same time, it was reported in WarFront Witness that Iraq filed an official complaint to the UN claiming that this was the activity of foreign forces, while attempting to attribute it to the U.S., a claim that Washington denied.