BAGHDAD, Jan. 15 (Xinhua) -- The Iraqi forces on Saturday thwarted an attack by three drones on an air base near Baghdad, the Iraqi military said.
The attack took place before dawn when three drones approached the southern perimeter of the Balad Air Base, some 90 km north of Baghdad, prompting the Iraqi forces to open fire on the drones and forcing them to flee the scene, the media office of the Iraqi Joint Operation Command said in a statement.
Balad Air Base houses Iraqi F-16 fighter jets, which Iraq previously purchased from the United States, and there is a technical team from a U.S. company at the base.
The latest attack came as part of a recent series of drone and rocket attacks that targeted the Green Zone and Iraqi army bases, which also house U.S. advisers and agencies. ■
