An uneasy calm enveloped the U.S. Embassy in Iraq on Thursday as new images from the scene revealed extensive damage following days of sometimes violent protests by Iranian-backed militia members and their supporters.
The photos show a burned and charred reception area, smashed windows and vandalized rooms left behind by supporters and members of the Iranian-trained Hashed al-Shaabi military network, also known as the Popular Mobilization Forces. No deaths or serious injuries have been reported, and the embassy was not evacuated.
The Pentagon sent hundreds of troops to the region, and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said he would delay a trip to Central Asia and Europe to focus on “the ongoing situation in Iraq and ensure the safety and security” of Americans there.
“We’ll continue cooperation (with Iraq) to hold Iran and its proxies responsible,” Pompeo said.
The embassy protest erupted Tuesday, two days after U.S. airstrikes killed at least two dozen Iran-backed fighters in Iraq. Demonstrators shouting “Death to America!” smashed their way into the embassy compound and set fire to a reception area as U.S. combat helicopters swooped over the complex.
Militia leaders with the Popular Mobilization Forces ultimately ordered supporters to retreat, declaring the demonstration a win in the battle to expel U.S. troops from Iraq.
“After achieving the intended aim, we pulled out from this place triumphantly,” said Fadhil al-Gezzi, a militia supporter. “We rubbed America’s nose in the dirt.”
Protests are nothing new in Baghdad, but most have targeted the Iraqi government and what Sunni Iraqis view as meddling by Iran’s Shiite government.
James Piazza, a Penn State political science professor specializing in the Islamic world, said the clashes underscore the struggle in Iraq between the Shiite majority – long oppressed under Saddam Hussein – and Sunnis who make up about one-third of the nation of 40 million people.
“The PMF has vowed further acts of revenge against the U.S. for the airstrikes,” Piazza told USA TODAY. “It may become impossible for the Iraqi government to balance Sunnis and Shiites.”
