By Alvise Armellini and Angelo Amante
ROME, March 12 (Reuters) – An overnight airstrike that hit an Italian military base in Iraqi Kurdistan was deliberate, the defence ministry said on Thursday, targeting a facility hosting NATO personnel amid the ongoing conflict with Iran.
The strike on Erbil’s Camp Singara, which caused no injuries, came as regional tensions escalate following the war against Iran launched nearly two weeks ago by the United States and Israel.
“Absolutely yes. That is a NATO base within Operation Inherent Resolve, so it is also an American base,” Minister Guido Crosetto told Italian state broadcaster RAI when asked whether the attack had been intentional.
Crosetto did not indicate who was responsible for the strike, seemingly linked to the wider conflict, but said the 141 Italian soldiers stationed at the site would return home, describing the move as previously planned.
“We have already brought 102 people back from that mission, and we moved around 40 to Jordan,” he said. Italy’s soldiers in Erbil mainly carry out training tasks with the Kurdish security forces.
The ministry initially spoke of a missile, but sources later said the facility was hit by a drone that destroyed a military vehicle used for logistics.
Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said it was not clear where the drone had come from but added that it was probably the work of pro-Iranian militia based in Iraq.
“I express solidarity and closeness to our soldiers, who were unharmed following the attack,” Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said on her X account.
The commander of the base, Colonel Stefano Pizzotti, told the Sky TG24 broadcaster that military staff had been warned of aerial threats and had taken shelter in bunkers hours before the strike.
“We are prepared and trained to deal with situations like these, and the safety of our personnel is always our top priority,” Pizzotti said, adding that the air raid alert had ended.
(Reporting by Alvise Armellini, Angelo Amante, Claudia Cristoferi; Editing by Jacqueline Wong, Crispian Balmer and Keith Weir)
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