At least six French soldiers were injured this Thursday after a drone attack by Iran against a joint military base ofKurdish Peshmerga forces and French troops in the Makhmour area, in the Erbil region, within Iraqi Kurdistan.
The governor of Erbil, Omed Koshnaw, confirmed in a statement that the attack targeted the base located in that area. The information was also corroborated by a security source who spoke to international agencies about the incident
.
According to the French army, the wounded soldiers were participating in anti-terrorist training activities alongside Iraqi forces when the attack occurred. After the explosion caused by the drone, the military was evacuated and taken to a nearby medical facility for
care.
The incident comes in a context of growing tension in the Middle East, marked by an increase in drone and missile attacks against international military installations in Iraq.
Several of these actions have been attributed to militias aligned with Iran, which has generated strong criticism from Western governments, who accuse Tehran of fomenting regional instability through allied armed groups
.
Hours before the attack on the Franco-Kurdish base, another drone hit an Italian military installation near Erbil known as Camp Singara. In that case, no injuries were reported. The Italian Defense Minister stated that the attack was intentional and recalled that the base houses NATO personnel as part of the international mission Operation Unbreakable Determination
.
Analysts point out that the increasing frequency of these attacks reflects the increase in tensions between Iran and Western powers in the midst of the current war in the region. The bases that house international forces have been considered strategic targets by Tehran-backed militias
. Macron announced that he will start sending more military resources to the Middle East and will reinforce the position close to Cyprus
Faced with the escalation of the conflict, France has begun to reinforce its military presence in the Middle East. The French government announced the deployment of several warships, including its aircraft carrier attack group, in strategic areas such as the Mediterranean Sea, the Red Sea and possibly the Strait of Hormuz
.
The French authorities indicated that the objective of this deployment is to protect their allies and ensure the security of key maritime routes in a context of increasing instability.
