Two rockets fall in Baghdad

BAGHDAD: Iraq’s military said in a statement on Monday that two Katyusha rockets had fallen late on Sunday in Baghdad’s Jadiriya area, near the heavily fortified Green Zone, without causing any casualties. One of the rockets landed near the Babylon hotel, which is used by Iraqi travellers and sometimes for government meetings, the military said in the statement. The Iraqi military blamed “terrorist groups” for the attack and said the rockets were fired from an area in the western part of the capital. Rockets regularly fly across the Tigris towards the heavily fortified Green Zone, which houses government buildings and foreign missions including the US Embassy. Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al Kadhimi pledged in a meeting with top diplomats to protect foreign missions and limit the possession of weapons to state forces following a US threat to shut down its embassy in the city. Washington blames such attacks on militia groups. — Reuters