By Iclal Turan
WASHINGTON (AA) - The US strongly condemned Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) for launching a series of missile strikes late Monday near the American consulate in Erbil in Iraq's Kurdistan region, calling them "reckless.”
"The United States strongly condemns Iran’s attacks in Erbil today and offers condolences to the families of those who were killed," State Department spokesman Matthew Miller told reporters during a press briefing.
"We oppose Iran’s reckless missile strikes, which undermine Iraq’s stability," he said, noting US support for the government of Iraq and efforts by the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) to meet the "aspirations of the Iraqi people."
Earlier in the day, White House National Security Council spokesperson Adrienne Watson told Anadolu by email that the US is in touch with senior Iraqi officials as well as officials in the KRG and continues to assess the situation.
Watson added that "initial indications are that this was a reckless and imprecise set of strikes."
Several explosions were reported in the vicinity of the US consulate in Erbil, with the IRGC quickly claiming responsibility, saying it was targeting a "spy headquarters" and a "gathering of anti-Iran terrorist groups" in the region with ballistic missiles.
A State Department spokesperson told Anadolu that there were "no impacts on the US Consulate in Erbil or the new consulate compound under construction" and no American personnel were injured.