Senior commander killed as deadly air strike hits pro-Iran forces in Iraq

WEB DESK: A high-ranking commander and at least 14 fighters from Iraq’s Popular Mobilisation Forces (PMF) have been killed in a devastating air strike in the western province of Anbar, security sources confirmed on Tuesday, according to the Express Tribune.

The strike, which hit a command headquarters in the town of Akashat near the Syrian border, targeted a senior-level security meeting.

Among the dead is Saad al-Baiji, the PMF’s operations commander for the Anbar region. Initial reports from health officials suggest the death toll could rise further, with at least 30 others wounded, several of whom remain in a critical condition.

Escalating regional tensions

The PMF, an state-sanctioned umbrella group of primarily Shia militias with close ties to Tehran, issued a statement branding the attack a “flagrant violation of Iraqi sovereignty.

While no party has officially claimed responsibility, the PMF has explicitly accused the United States of carrying out the raid.

The incident follows a period of heightened volatility in the region. Since late February, a series of unclaimed strikes has targeted pro-Iran assets across Iraq and Syria.

This latest bombardment comes amid a wider regional conflict that has seen repeated exchanges between US forces and Iran-aligned groups.

Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani has previously warned that such strikes risk dragging Iraq into a broader “tit-for-tat” cycle of violence.

Analysts suggest this specific targeting of leadership represents a significant escalation in the ongoing shadow war between Western interests and Iranian proxies in the Middle East.