Iraqi Officials Suspect Israel Targeted Chinese Air Defense Stashes

Iraqi authorities suspect Israel struck two locations where Iranian-backed militias stored shoulder-fired air defense systems of Chinese origin. Sources cited by the London-based newspaper Asharq Al-Awsat on Saturday identified the weapons as having been supplied by Tehran. The report did not specify the exact model of the systems involved.

The strikes occurred last week, shortly after the shipments arrived at the two sites. One source noted that the armed group involved selected storage spots that were difficult to reach or detect. The newspaper acknowledged that parts of the account remained unconfirmed and that no specific evidence was provided to support the claims.

An explosion on October 17 at a Popular Mobilization Forces base in Baghdad's East Canal area injured five people. The PMF, an umbrella body for many Iranian-backed militias and a government paramilitary force, initially described the blast as an accident. The Iraqi government promised an investigation into the incident, which reportedly hit a stockpile of obsolete ammunition.

An anonymous Iraqi official stated that authorities were still examining the circumstances of the East Canal blast. More than a week has passed since the incident, and no official update has been released. Other sources linked the mid-October explosion to a separate incident on October 1, when warehouses linked to Iran-backed groups in and around Baghdad were affected. Those warehouses reportedly held drones intended for suicide attacks and reconnaissance.

A security official said Iraqi authorities had not determined the nature of the strikes but believed Israel was responsible based on available evidence. This is not the first time Iraq has pointed to Israel for such attacks. Militias blamed Israel for strikes in 2019 and for a strike near the Iraqi border in Syria. In May, The Wall Street Journal reported that Israel established a secret airstrip in Iraq during its campaign against Iran.

Asharq Al-Awsat linked the movement of weapons from China to Iran with their subsequent transfer to Iraq, though it described that connection as unconfirmed. China's Foreign Ministry denied reports of the supply on July 28. A source in the Shi'ite Coordination Framework said ruling party leaders had spent weeks predicting a renewed war between Washington and Tehran would begin with the destruction of Iraqi faction capabilities. Most major PMF groups, excluding the Badr Organization, are sanctioned by the US as terrorist organizations.

The Islamic Resistance in Iraq, a coalition of militias that has attacked Israel and the US, published a statement claiming Iraqi airspace was being violated. The US withdrew its forces from Iraq on September 30, a deadline agreed with Baghdad. Iran has carried out more than 1,000 strikes on the Kurdistan Region using drones and missiles, while it and allied militias have mounted 600 attacks across Iraq.