Iraqi pro-Iran paramilitary force says its senior commander killed in US drone strike

A “US strike” in Baghdad killed a commander of the Hashed al-Shaabi, the paramilitary force says, with an Iraqi security official reporting two deaths in a drone attack.

“A drone targeted the logistical support headquarters of Hashed al-Shaabi,” which are pro-Iranian paramilitary units largely integrated into the Iraqi armed forces, the security official says.

The strike killed “two members and wounded seven others,” says the official, speaking on condition of anonymity.

A Hashed source, also asking not to be named, confirms the death toll and charges that the United States was behind the attack.

Harakat al-Nujaba, one of the Hashed’s factions, says in a statement that “the deputy commander of operations for Baghdad, Mushtaq Talib al-Saidi” has been “martyred in a US strike.”