Iraq: Rockets hit areas near Baghdad airport

Baghdad, Oct 1 (IANS) Two Katyusha rockets hit areas around the Baghdad International Airport on Tuesday, causing no casualties, the Iraqi military said.

The attack occurred at 00:20 a.m. local time on Tuesday local time when two rockets pounded areas close to the airport, with one landing on a base of the Iraqi Counter-Terrorism Service, according to a statement by Tahsin al-Khafaji, spokesman for the Iraqi Joint Operations Command.

Iraqi security forces found a rocket launcher on a truck left in the al-Ameriyah neighbourhood in western Baghdad, and defused several unfired rockets in the launcher, al-Khafaji said, adding that more information will be released later.

Meanwhile, an Interior Ministry source told Xinhua news agency that the Iraqi forces cordoned off the neighbourhood and launched a probe into the incident to identify the attackers.

He said that the attack targeted an Iraqi military base housing US military experts near the airport.

No group has so far claimed responsibility for the attack.

Iraqi military bases housing US troops and the US embassy in the Green Zone of Baghdad have been frequently under unknown mortar and rocket attacks.

--IANS

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