IranPress/Middle East- A local official at Basra International Airport said that several rockets were fired at the facility on Saturday morning, following the yesterday's violent protests in the city.
The official said it was not clear who was behind the Saturday morning attack on Basra airport, which also houses the U.S. consulate.
He said the attack occurred at about 8 a.m. local time and did not cause casualties or disrupt flights in or out of the city.
The attack did not disrupt air traffic.
The official spoke on condition of anonymity, citing security concerns.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack.
Meanwhile, Basra International Airport rejected the news about the attack.
Thousands of protesters flooded the streets of Basra on Friday, targeting major government buildings and setting them on fire.
Later in the day, rioters attacked and torched the Iranian consulate in downtown Basra. Bahram Qassemi, spokesman for Iran’s Foreign Ministry, condemned the “agitated” attack, saying it caused “considerable material damage.”
Basra is an important hub for oil exports, which account for over 95 percent of Iraq’s government revenues. Long neglected, the city is one of the few cities in the Middle East without an effective water treatment system. State officials blame a public funding crisis caused by years of low oil prices.
Violent protests in Basra erupted earlier this week and have since resulted in the deaths of 11 people, killed in clashes with local security forces.
Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, has ordered an inquiry into the violence, while the parliament announced it will hold an emergency session on Saturday.
Meanwhile in Baghdad, three mortar shells landed inside the capital’s heavily fortified Green Zone just after midnight on Friday, the Iraqi military said.
The projectiles hit an “abandoned lot,” resulting in “no casualties or physical damage,” it added.
A security source inside the Green Zone told Reuters the shells landed near the Egyptian embassy. Iraqi security forces launched a search operation to try to determine the spot from which the mortars were fired.
The city has been hit by protests against poor public services since early July.
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