ERBIL (Kurdistan Chronicle) — At least eight Katyusha rockets were fired early morning on Wednesday at Zilikana base of the Turkish troops in north of Iraq, making no significant impacts, according to official sources. 

Two rockets landed inside the base and six others fell outside the premises without causing any casualties or material damage, Kurdistan Region’s Counter Terrorism Unit (CTU) said in a statement. 

Soon after the attack, an Iran-backed Shia militia group known as Islamic Resistance Ahrar Al-Iraq Brigade claimed responsibility for the attack on its Telegram channel, saying that its fighters had fired 20 Grad rockets at 07:36 (Baghdad Time) at the Turkish base. 

The group warned that attacks on Turkish troops would continue if they refuse to leave Iraq “immediately and completely”. It also threatened to expand the operations into the Turkish territories. 

The Turkish troops are based in Zilikana, northeast of Mosul, since 2015 when the Islamic State (IS) was still in control of swaths of territories in north of Iraq. The Iraqi government has frequently condemned Turkey's military presence, often describing it as illegal.

The base has been frequently targeted in the recent years, most of which attributed to or claimed by the Iran-backed Shia militia groups. 

Islamic Resistance Ahrar Al-Iraq Brigade previously in December 2022 claimed responsibility for another attack on Zilikana base.