ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Iraq’s National Intelligence Service (INIS) on Sunday denied a media report claiming Baghdad had received warnings of imminent large-scale military strikes inside the country, dismissing the claims amid growing US pressure on Iraq to curb Iranian-backed groups.
In a statement, the INIS directly addressed a report published Saturday by the Saudi-owned Asharq Al-Awsat, which claimed the Iraqi government had received two warning messages over the past two weeks, one from an Arab country and another from a Western intelligence service, citing “indications of impending, wide-ranging military strikes inside Iraq.”
“We categorically deny the accuracy of what was stated in the newspaper's report above in its entirety and in detail, we confirm that the Iraqi government has not received any message of this kind,” the INIS said.
“We call on media outlets to exercise accuracy in dealing with such issues that affect the national security of the Iraqi state,” the statement added.
The Asharq Al-Awsat report cited Iraqi officials as saying a “friendly” country had warned Baghdad that potential targets could include government institutions linked to Shiite factions and the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF), military figures, drone and missile depots, and training camps.