Satellite Photos Appear to Confirm Iran-Linked Weapons Depot in Iraq Was Destroyed by Air Strike
by Algemeiner Staff
Satellite photos of a destroyed site at a military base north of Baghdad, Iraq appear to confirm that the destruction was the result of an air strike.
ImageSat International posted the images on Thursday, saying that the Aug. 20 explosion at Balad Air Base completely destroyed a weapons storage facility used by an Iran-controlled proxy militia.
“The blast was probably caused by an airstrike,” ISI tweeted, “followed by secondary explosions of the explosives stored in the place.”
#Iraq, North #Baghdad – #Iran-proxy Shiite-Iraqi #Militia Base Within Balad Airbase strike (20 August 2019) – #Aftereffect. pic.twitter.com/eWtbSNRIlf
— ImageSat Intl. (@ImageSatIntl) August 22, 2019
A before and after image of the site showed a group of shipping containers, presumably holding weapons, with the second image showing that the containers were totally destroyed.
#Before (image: @AuroraIntel) & #after: strike aftereffect in Balad airbase, #Iraq. pic.twitter.com/DGRkLmI30n
— ImageSat Intl. (@ImageSatIntl) August 22, 2019
While ImageSat did not mention who might be responsible for the air strike, it assessed that “the site’s attack aimed to destroy the Iranian land bridge from Tehran to Syria and Hizballah, as well as to prevent the Iranian capability of conducting attacks from Iraq against the surrounding countries.”
#ISI assesses: the sites attack aimed to destroy the #Iranian land bridge from #Tehran to #Syria and #Hizballah, as well as to prevent the Iranian capability of conducting attacks from #Iraq against the surrounding countries.#intelligence #IMINT #VISINT #satellite #Hezbollah pic.twitter.com/iD9wXXJQOA
— ImageSat Intl. (@ImageSatIntl) August 22, 2019
Iran has long sought to create a land corridor stretching to the Mediterranean Sea as part of its imperialist ambitions for regional hegemony.
In what it has called the “campaign between the wars,” Israel and its unacknowledged Arab allies have sought to prevent Iranian expansionism and especially its construction of a land corridor to Syria and Lebanon, which border the Jewish state.
Asked about the destruction last week of an Iran-linked missile depot in southern Baghdad, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said, “Iran has no immunity, anywhere.”
“We will act — and currently are acting — against them, wherever it is necessary,” Netanyahu added.