Overview
- Israel’s covert site in western Iraq, disclosed in Saturday’s Wall Street Journal report citing U.S. officials, allegedly supported a five‑week air campaign against Iran and was set up with U.S. knowledge.
- The outpost reportedly housed Israeli special forces, search‑and‑rescue teams, and logistics units, and Israel offered help after a U.S. F‑15 went down near Isfahan while U.S. forces carried out the rescue as Israel flew protective strikes.
- In early March, Iraqi troops sent to probe shepherd reports of low‑flying helicopters were driven back by airstrikes that killed one soldier and wounded two, prompting a UN complaint in which Baghdad initially blamed the United States and which U.S. officials denied.
- Iraq’s security spokesman Saad Maan says April–May inspections found no foreign forces or gear in the area, and parliament plans to question the defense and interior ministers to establish what happened.
- Evidence remains partial, with open‑source images pointing to a makeshift airstrip near Najaf and experts noting the vast, sparsely populated western desert has long enabled temporary outposts, including by U.S. forces in 1991 and 2003.