An Iraqi militia group claimed to have downed a MQ-9 Reaper drone
An American military drone has “crashed” to the north of the Iraqi capital, a Pentagon official told multiple media outlets, declining to offer details.
The incident comes weeks after a US drone strike killed a local militia leader in Baghdad, drawing condemnation from the Iraqi government.
The UAV went down on Thursday night near Balad air base, located around 70 kilometers (43 miles) north of Baghdad, the unnamed defense official said in a statement obtained by AFP, RIA Novosti and other news agencies.
“Iraqi security forces recovered the aircraft. There were no injuries reported,” the official said on Friday, adding that “an investigation of the cause of the crash is underway.”
While the official gave no indication of whether the drone suffered a technical issue or was downed by enemy fire, the admission came just hours after a local militia group – the Islamic Resistance in Iraq – claimed to have targeted a US MQ-9 Reaper, which are used for both surveillance and air strikes.
“Mujahideen yesterday targeted... an MQ-9 drone belonging to the American occupation,” the group said in a statement on Friday.
Unconfirmed footage purporting to show the expensive US drone plummeting from the sky engulfed in flames has made the rounds online – while another clip appeared to depict the aftermath of the crash, with debris seen scattered on the ground.
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