Baghdad (AFP)- US soldiers discovered a field of rocket launchers near a US army base south of Baghdad armed with 34 Iranian-made missiles, the military said on Saturday.
"After several rockets hit FOB (Forward Operating Base) Hammer on July 11, the 3rd Heavy Brigade Combat Team manoeuvred to find the source of the attack," a statement said.
The next morning an "unmanned aerial vehicle located 46 rocket launchers in the northern section of Besmaya Range Complex aimed at FOB Hammer. Thirty-four of the launchers were armed with Iranian 107mm rockets," it added.
The US army believes the other twelve rockets were launched at the base the day before, killing one US soldier. The military announced the death on June 12 but provided no details at the time.
US commanders frequently accuse Iran of providing weapons, training and support to Shiite militias in Iraq, including many of the rockets launched at Baghdad’s heavily fortified Green Zone.
Earlier this month, US commanders stepped up the charges, claiming that senior leaders of Iran’s special forces and of the Lebanese Shiite Hezbollah militia have trained Iraqi fighters and provided other support.
Iran has always denied that it is fomenting unrest in its war-torn neighbour, insisting that the US occupation is the cause of Iraq’s woes.
