Iraq in contact with Iran, US in bid to stay out of conflict: officials

Iraq has approached the Iranian and US governments in a bid to prevent being caught up in a regional escalation, officials said Saturday, as Washington's ally Israel and Iran traded blows. The government in Baghdad is a close ally of Tehran, but also a strategic partner of Iran's arch-foe the United States, which has some 2,500 troops in Iraq as part of an anti-jihadist coalition. The governmen

 Iraq has approached the Iranian and US governments in a bid to prevent being caught up in a regional escalation, officials said Saturday, as Washington's ally Israel and Iran traded blows.

The government in Baghdad is a close ally of Tehran, but also a strategic partner of Iran's arch-foe the United States, which has some 2,500 troops in Iraq as part of an anti-jihadist coalition.

The government in a statement late Saturday said that it "reiterates its firm and unequivocal rejection of any violation of Iraqi airspace or its use in military attacks carried out by the Zionist entity against the Islamic Republic of Iran".

It called on the United States to "uphold its responsibilities... to prevent aircraft belonging to the Zionist entity from once again breaching Iraqi airspace to carry out such attacks".

A senior Iraqi security official told AFP that Baghdad had also asked Tehran not to strike US targets in its territory.

"The request was made. They promised us positive things," the official said, requesting anonymity to discuss sensitive matters.

An Iraqi government official, who also requested anonymity, said Baghdad had made an official request to Washington to help preserve the integrity of its airspace, citing the United States' role as the leader of the international coalition against the Islamic State group.

Baghdad on Friday lodged a complaint with the United Nations over Israel's use of its airspace to attack Iran.

Before the current escalation, which began early Friday with a series of Israeli attacks on military and nuclear sites in Iran, Tehran had threatened to strike military bases hosting US forces in the region in the event of any conflict should nuclear talks with Washington fail.

Throughout the Gaza war, which began in October 2023 and has pitted Israel against the Iran-backed Palestinian militant group Hamas, Tehran-aligned armed factions have launched dozens of rocket and drone attacks targeting US forces in Iraq and neighbouring Syria.

Before Israel's wave of attacks on Iran began, the United States on Wednesday announced it was reducing staffing at its Baghdad embassy, citing security reasons.

Several pro-Iran groups in Iraq called on Friday for the accelerated departure of US forces from the country, with the powerful Kataeb Hezbollah warning of "additional wars in the region"