Officials said a number of rockets were fired Sunday at the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad, Iraq. Photo by Ahmed Jalil/EPA-EFE
Dec. 20 (UPI) -- Officials said a barrage of rockets targeting the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad were intercepted by the compound's defense system on Sunday.
In a statement, the U.S. Embassy in the Middle Eastern country confirmed the attack, stating it resulted in minor damage to the compound but there were no U.S. casualties to report.
The rocket volley activated the embassy's C-Ram defense system, which detects rocket, artillery or mortar fire and intercepts rounds mid-flight.
The embassy said it has received reports of damage to residential areas near the embassy and possibly injuries to Iraqi civilians.
"As we have said many times, these sorts of attacks on diplomatic facilities are a violation of international law and are a direct assault on the sovereignty of the Iraqi government," the embassy said in the statement. "We call on all Iraqi political and governmental leaders to take steps to prevent such attacks and hold accountable those responsible."
In a separate statement, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo blamed the attack on Iran-backed militias.
"The people of Iraq deserve to have these attackers prosecuted," he said via Twitter. "These violent and corrupt criminals must cease their destabilizing actions."
A spokesman for the presidency of Iraq condemned the rocket barrage, describing it as a "terrorist act" in a statement.
The attack was launched ahead of the one-year anniversary of a U.S. airstrike near Baghdad's international airport on Jan. 3 that killed Qassem Soleimani, who headed Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
It was also conducted as the Trump administration continues to impose sanctions targeting Iran as part of its "maximum pressure" campaign during its final weeks in office.
In mid-November, the Pentagon announced plans to reduce the number of troops in Iraqi by Jan. 15 to 2,500 from the current 3,000 soldiers.
According to the U.S. Army website, C-Ram defense systems have thwarted 375 rocket or mortar rounds "fired at high-value theater assets, with no fratricides or collateral damage."