Rocket Fire Destroys Aircraft at Baghdad’s 'Camp Victory'

The attack resulted in the complete destruction of a transport aircraft stationed within the base, according to reports from Al Jazeera and local Iraqi security sources.

The Strike and Its Impact Witnesses near the airport reported hearing several powerful explosions before dawn. Unlike recent drone incursions, preliminary military analysis suggests this was a coordinated rocket attack that managed to bypass the base’s air defense systems.

Aircraft Destroyed: A transport plane belonging to the Iraqi Special Forces was hit directly and consumed by fire.

Symbolic Target: While pro-Iran militias claimed on March 23 that U.S. and NATO forces had "completed their withdrawal" from the facility—handing it over to the Iraqi Counter-Terrorism Service—the base remains a primary target due to its strategic location and historical association with the American military presence in Iraq.

Regional Context This incident marks a continuation of the "Baghdad Front" in the month-old regional war involving the U.S., Israel, and Iran. Since the conflict began on February 28, 2026, Camp Victory and the nearby U.S. diplomatic and logistics centers have been targeted at least eight times by various "Islamic Resistance" factions.

Analysts suggest that these attacks are intended to ensure that U.S. forces do not return to the base to use it as a staging ground for the rumored ground operations in Iran. The Iraqi government has reportedly dismissed several security commanders in the airport sector following the failure to prevent the rockets from reaching the inner perimeter of the base.