Iranian missiles target U.S. troops in Iraq

Iran fired 16 missiles at military bases housing U.S. troops in Iraq, an act of retaliation for the U.S. strike that killed Iranian commander Qassem Soleimani. On 8 January 2020, in a military operation code named Operation Martyr Soleimani, Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) launched 22 ballistic missiles at the Ayn al-Asad airbase in Al Anbar Governorate, Western Iraq, as well as another airbase in Erbil, Iraqi Kurdistan, in response to the assassination of Major General Qasem Soleimani by United States forces. Iran had informed the Iraqi government before the attack, and the information was passed to the US military. No Iraqi or American casualties were reported. A previous retaliatory attack also took place on 4 January, when rockets and mortars struck the Balad Air Base and the Green Zone. On the evening of 8 January 2020, Reuters reported that three Katyusha rockets were launched, hitting Baghdad's Green Zone.

In the lead up to the attacks, Iranian officials had stated that Iran would retaliate against U.S. forces for the killing of general Qasem Soleimani in Baghdad on 3 January 2020. Reportedly, following the Baghdad strike, U.S. spy agencies detected that Iran's ballistic missile regiments were at a heightened readiness but it was unclear at the time if they were defensive measures or an indication of a future attack on U.S. forces. U.S. president Donald Trump warned Tehran that any retaliation would result in the U.S. targeting 52 significant Iranian sites, including cultural sites. On 3 December 2019, five rockets had landed on the Ayn al-Asad airbase and there were no injuries. A "security source" inside Ayn al-Asad airbase and a "local official at a nearby town" said that the reports that the Ayn al-Asad airbase were under attack at that time were false. These reports on Twitter temporarily caused a rally of U.S. and Brent crude oil futures. On 4 January 2020, two rockets hit the Balad Air Base located near Baghdad. Two mortars also hit Baghdad's Green Zone. The attacks resulted in no casualties or damage. 

 According to Iraqi Prime Minister (PM) Adel Abdul Mahdi's spokesperson, on 8 January, shortly after midnight, the PM had received a message from Iran, indicating that the response to the killing of General Soleimani had "started or was about to start". Iran also informed the PM that only those locations where the U.S. troops are stationed would be targeted. Although the exact locations of the bases were not disclosed, U.S. officials confirm their troops had adequate warning to shelter from the attack. According to the Iranian Students News Agency (ISNA), the country's state-run news outlet, Iran fired "tens of ground-to-ground missiles" at the base and claimed responsibility for the attacks. ISNA stated that the code used to launch the missiles was "Oh Zahra". The attacks unfolded in two waves, each about an hour apart. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) claimed responsibility for the attack and announced that it was carried out in response to the killing of Soleimani. The IRGC added that if the United States responded with a retaliatory strike, the IRGC would respond in kind. The IRGC further declared that their statement was intended as a warning and applied to all of the United States' partners who provided their bases to its military.