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The
attack came as Iran and its allies in Iraq marked the second
anniversary of the assassination of top Iranian general Qassem
Soleimani.
Soleimani was killed in a drone strike near Baghdad airport
ordered by then-U.S. president Donald Trump.
Commenting on the attack, an official of the U.S.-led
international military coalition said the base's defence system
had engaged "two fixed-wing suicide drones. They were shot down
without incident".
"This was a dangerous attack on a civilian airport," the
coalition official said in a brief statement.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack.
Armed groups that some Iraqi officials say are backed by Iran
have claimed responsibility for similar incidents in the past.
Footage provided by the coalition official showed what the
official said was debris of two fixed-wing drones destroyed in
the attack, with writing clearly visible on the wing of one
drone reading "Soleimani's revenge".
Soleimani, head of an elite overseas unit of Iran’s
Revolutionary Guards, was killed along with Iraqi militia leader
Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis on Jan. 3, 2020, in a U.S. drone strike on
his convoy at Baghdad airport.
Hundreds of supporters of Iran-backed militia groups gathered on
Sunday at Baghdad airport to mark the anniversary of Soleimani's
death and to chant anti-American slogans.
(Reporting by Ahmed Rasheed, writing by Maher Chmaytelli;
Editing by Kevin Liffey and Gareth Jones)
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