The revealing documentation: This is what the secret base that Israel established in Iraq looks like

After the report in the Wall Street Journal according to which Israel used a secret base in Iraqi territory during the campaign with Iran, the Qatari Al-Arabi channel published today (Tuesday) documentation from the area where, according to the claims, the same facility operated, which provides a glimpse of what, according to the reports, served as a point of activity in the heart of the Najaf desert.

This is an isolated desert area deep in Iraq, far from population concentrations or Iraqi military bases. According to the Iraqi authorities, the site was previously used by the Iraqi army during the Saddam Hussein era, but was abandoned after it was attacked from the air by the US in 2003. Security sources in Iraq claim that the force that operated there used old infrastructure in the area for movement and activity.

According to the Iraqi authorities, after the abnormal presence was detected, security forces were dispatched to the area and operations were launched to tighten the pressure on the force operating there. In Iraq, there are conflicting versions regarding the duration of the stay: while according to some sources it was a presence that lasted only a few hours, the operational command of Karbala claims that the force remained in the area for about 48 hours before withdrawing.

In the shadow of the reports of an unusual military presence in the Iraqi desert and the claims of the use of a secret facility during the campaign with Iran, the Lebanese newspaper Al-Akhbar, which is affiliated with Hezbollah, reported this morning that the commander of the Quds Force in the Revolutionary Guards, General Ismail Kaani, visited Baghdad in the last two days, which appears to be a significant event that goes beyond the internal Iraqi arena. It was reported that the visit also dealt with regional security preparations, against the background of the tensions with Israel and the USA.

According to political and security sources cited in the report, Kaani held a series of meetings with the leaders of the pro-Iranian militias, senior politicians and Iraqi government officials, with regional developments and the fear of a possible escalation at the heart of the talks.

According to the report, one of the focal points of the discussion was the reorganization of the militias and the preservation of the security coordination mechanisms between them, in the shadow of growing assessments of complex military operations that may expand deep into the region.

In a report published yesterday in the Qatari Al-Arabi Al-Jadid newspaper, a senior official in the office of the outgoing Iraqi Prime Minister, Muhammad Shia al-Sudani, was quoted as claiming that the Wall Street Journal’s exposure of Israeli activity in Iraqi territory did not stem from Israel’s “intelligence or military superiority”, but was made possible, according to him, due to American aid.

According to the same source, Israel entered the territory of Iraq under the cover of the activities of the international coalition against ISIS, taking advantage of the American military presence in the country.

According to him, the incident itself took place on the night between March 4 and 5, after shepherds reported the landing of helicopters and unusual military movement in a desert area in southwestern Iraq. According to the version he presented, an Iraqi force sent to the scene was attacked from the air about 4 kilometers before reaching the landing point, one Iraqi soldier was killed and two others were wounded, and the force had to retreat.

It is also claimed that in real time, the incident was classified as part of American attacks against al-Hashd al-Shaabi, when Baghdad even sent a letter of protest to Washington, which he claims was not answered.

The same source tried to cool down the drama surrounding the reports, and claimed that it was not about the establishment of a permanent Israeli logistics center in Iraq, but rather a short-term and localized presence carried out, according to him, with full American assistance, possibly through Syrian airspace. However, he said that it cannot be ruled out that some of the attacks against pro-Iranian militias in Iraq during the war were carried out by Israel.