Baghdad recalls its ambassador from Tehran and Western criticism of the Iranian attack on Erbil

Part of the destruction caused by the Iranian bombing on targets in Erbil (Anatolia)

The Iraqi Foreign Ministry announced on Tuesday that it had summoned its ambassador from Tehran for consultations against the backdrop of the recent "Iranian attacks" on Erbil in the north of the country, and while Iran adhered to what it called the right to defend its security, the United States and European countries condemned the attacks and described them as unjustified.

At dawn today, the Kurdistan Regional Security Council announced in a statement that the Iranian Revolutionary Guards launched a ballistic missile attack on several civilian areas in Erbil on Monday evening, killing 4 civilians and wounding 6 others.

In return, the IRGC announced that it had bombed "spy centers belonging to the Israeli Mossad and gatherings of anti-Iran terrorist groups" in Erbil with ballistic missiles, Iran's official IRNA news agency reported.

The Iraqi Foreign Ministry said in a statement that it summoned "its ambassador to Tehran, Naseer Abdul Mohsen, for the purpose of consulting against the backdrop of the recent Iranian attacks on Erbil, which led to the fall of a number of martyrs and injuries."

It added that it also summoned Iran's charge d'affaires to Baghdad, Abu al-Fadl Azizi, and handed him a note of protest against the backdrop of the IRGC's bombing of targets in Erbil.

In the memorandum delivered to the Iranian Chargé d'affaires, Iraq expressed its "strong condemnation and denunciation of the attack on a number of areas in Erbil, which resulted in civilian casualties and damage to public and private property".

Iraqi National Security Adviser Qassim al-Araji told Al Jazeera that allegations that Iran targeted a Mossad headquarters were baseless.

Aggression against Iraq

Earlier on Tuesday, the Iraqi government considered the Iranian bombing of the city of Erbil "an aggression against the country's sovereignty and an abuse of the principle of good neighborliness and the security of the region."

In an earlier Telegram statement, the Foreign Ministry said it would "take all legal measures, including filing a complaint with the UN Security Council."

Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) spokesman Bishawa Hefermani said the Iranian attack on Erbil targeted women, children and civilians.

Hevermani described the Iranian attack as a "cowardly act of violence", stressing that it was "a flagrant violation and an undeniable crime against humanity".

Hundreds of protesters also gathered in front of a UN base in Erbil to condemn Iranian raids on the area and urge the international community to act against Iran.

Legitimate right

On the other hand, Iran said on Tuesday that it used its legitimate and legal right to deter threats to national security, against the backdrop of the bombing of the Revolutionary Guards targets in Syria and Iraq last night.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanaani said in a written statement that the bombing was a reaction to those working against his country's national security.

The bombing "was carried out within the framework of the legal defence of Iran's sovereignty and security against terrorists", he said.

Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said it had bombed "gathering places for key terrorist leaders and elements (...) Especially ISIS (Islamic State) in the occupied territories of Syria."

In its statement, the IRGC said its bombardment of these sites in Syria was "in response to the recent atrocities of terrorist groups that led to the martyrdom of a group of our dear compatriots in Kerman and Rask".

Western condemnations

Internationally, America condemned the attacks, with State Department spokesman Matthew Miller saying in a statement that "the United States strongly condemns the attacks launched by Iran on Erbil today (yesterday) and offers its condolences to the families of those killed. We oppose reckless Iranian missile strikes that undermine Iraq's stability."

White House National Security Council spokeswoman Adrian Watson also denounced a "series of reckless and inaccurate strikes," stressing that "no U.S. crews or facilities have been targeted" in Iraqi Kurdistan.

The UN mission in Iraq also "strongly" condemned the Iranian attack on Erbil and called for "an end to attacks that violate Iraq's sovereignty."

British Foreign Secretary David Cameron condemned the attacks by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) on the Iraqi city of Erbil, describing them as "unjustified actions".

In turn, the German Foreign Ministry said in a post on the X platform that it "strongly condemns these irresponsible missile attacks launched by Iran on Erbil last night, because they violate the territorial integrity of Iraq and endanger the stability of the entire region."

The French Foreign Ministry also strongly condemned the attacks, saying in a statement that "these attacks are a clear violation of Iraq's sovereignty and are worrying and unacceptable and threaten the stability and security of Iraq."

Source : Al Jazeera + Agencies