The deadliest attack on the U.S.-led coalition in Iraq in over a year, it prompted NATO to expand its Iraq force from 500 to roughly 4,000 personnel.
Key Facts
- Rockets fired
- Approximately 14
- Direct hits on coalition base
- 3 rockets
- Killed
- 2 people
- Injured
- 13 people
- Time of attack
- 21:30 local time, 15 February 2021
- NATO force increase
- 500 to ~4,000 personnel
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
Tensions between the United States and Iran had been elevated since the January 2020 U.S. assassination of Iranian Quds Force commander Qasem Soleimani. Iranian-backed Shiite militias had previously targeted Western military and diplomatic installations in Iraq, and the arrival of the Biden administration in January 2021 did not immediately reduce hostilities.
On 15 February 2021, approximately fourteen rockets were launched from an area south of Erbil at around 21:30 local time, striking the U.S.-led coalition base near Erbil International Airport. Two people were killed and thirteen injured, including an American service member. A little-known Shiite group, Saraya Awliya al-Dam, claimed responsibility, though many officials and analysts attributed the attack to Iranian-backed militias.
The attack was described as the most serious against the U.S.-led coalition since the Biden administration took office and raised fears of broader escalation. NATO responded by announcing an expansion of its Iraq mission from 500 to approximately 4,000 troops. A follow-up attack on Erbil airport occurred in April 2021, and Iran denied involvement in the February strikes.