March 24 (Reuters) – Airstrikes targeting a site belonging to Iraq’s Shi’ite Popular Mobilization Forces in the western province of Anbar killed at least six fighters, including the PMF’s Anbar operations commander, and wounded 15 others, security sources told Reuters early on Tuesday.
The PMF confirmed in a statement the death of its Anbar commander, Saad al-Baiji, and accused the United States of carrying out the attack, saying a U.S. airstrike targeted a command headquarters while personnel were on duty.
The PMF, known in Arabic as Hashd al-Shaabi, is an umbrella group of mostly Shi’ite paramilitary factions that was formally integrated into Iraq’s state security forces and includes several groups aligned with Iran.
Iran-backed armed groups have launched attacks on U.S. bases in Iraq since the outbreak of the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran.
(Reporting by Ahmed Rasheed; Additional reporting by Enas Alashray and Yomna Ehab; Editing by Lincoln Feast.)
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