French soldier killed in attack in Iraqi Kurdistan

Paris: A French soldier was killed in an attack in Iraq’s autonomous Kurdistan region, President Emmanuel Macron said on Friday, confirming the first French military death in the Middle East war.

Since US-Israeli strikes on Iran last month engulfed the Middle East in war, multiple attacks attributed to pro-Iranian factions have targeted the region where foreign forces are based as part of an international anti-jihadist coalition.

The member of the armed forces “died for France during an attack in the Erbil region of Iraq,” Macron posted on X, adding that several soldiers were also wounded.

He did not say who was behind the attack.

Earlier, a pro-Iranian Iraqi group warned that French interests in the region were now targets after the arrival of a French aircraft carrier to “the area of operations of the American Central Command.”

The statement on Ashab Alkahf’s Telegram channel also warned “our brothers in the security forces” to stay away from a base it said housed French troops.

There was no direct claim of responsibility for the attack from the group.

The French military said earlier that drones had hit a base where troops were taking part in counter-terrorism training with Iraqi counterparts.

The governor of Erbil said the strike involved two drones and hit a base in Mala Qara, around 40 kilometres (25 miles) from the regional capital.

The French military said on Thursday that six people had been wounded in the attack. It was not clear whether the solider who died was among that toll.

“The war in Iran cannot justify such attacks,” Macron said, calling the strike “unacceptable”.

The soldier’s death follows a separate drone strike on an Italian base in Erbil, within a military compound that was hosting other foreign troops.

No injuries were reported in that attack, but Italy said it was temporarily withdrawing its military personnel from the base.

Soldiers from several countries, including Italy and France, are training members of the Kurdish security forces in Iraqi Kurdistan as part of the anti-jihadist coalition led by Washington.

“Their presence in Iraq is part of the strict framework of the fight against terrorism,” Macron posted on Friday, referring to the French troops who had been attacked.

Macron has insisted that his country’s stance in the Middle East war is “strictly defensive”.