Large fire erupts in Erbil after drone attack near US base

2026-03-18 - 04:59

A significant blaze engulfed a site in Erbil, northern Iraq, on Wednesday following a kamikaze drone strike in the Koya Sanjaq district, local media reported. The attack targeted a commercial warehouse, sparking a fire that sent plumes of smoke into the sky as emergency crews rushed to contain the flames. The Kurdistan Regional Government has yet to release an official statement regarding the incident. Drone Strike Details The drone struck without warning, igniting a fire at the impact site that required immediate response from civil defense teams. While the warehouse was reported to be commercial in nature, authorities have not disclosed the extent of damage or whether casualties occurred. The absence of an official KRG statement leaves questions about the attack's origin and intent unanswered. Airport Incident In a separate but concurrent incident, three loud explosions were heard in rapid succession near Erbil International Airport, which hosts a US military base. Air defense systems activated during the drone attack, and fragments of an intercepted drone fell into a residential park in the city. Security forces, fire trucks, and ambulances were swiftly deployed to the affected areas, though no casualties have been reported from the airport vicinity. Regional Context These events are part of an ongoing pattern of daily explosions and air defense activations in Erbil, which began following the onset of Iranian retaliatory strikes against US and Israeli targets. Since Tehran launched its campaign, the northern Iraqi city has experienced near-daily security incidents, underscoring the escalating volatility in a region increasingly caught in the crossfire of the broader US-Iran conflict. The attacks continue to test the preparedness of local defenses and raise concerns about spillover effects on neighboring countries like Türkiye.