Iraqi Kurdistan: Many people killed and injured by explosion at airport
An explosion at Arbat airport in Iraqi Kurdistan's Sulaymaniyah province on Monday left several people dead and injured, Rudaw reported.
Local security sources told Rudaw that the casualties were "military" and several people suffering from injuries were taken to the Peshmerga Hospital in the city of Sulaymaniyah.
The cause of the blast and whether or not it was caused by a drone strike is yet to be known.
An airport cabin was totally destroyed by the blast, Rudaw added.
#BREAKING: Smoke rises from Arbat airport, 27km east of Sulaimani province, with the origin of the fire yet to be identified. A security source has confirmed to Rudaw that the incident resulted in multiple casualties.
— Rudaw English (@RudawEnglish) September 18, 2023
????: Submitted pic.twitter.com/wrdSAhH1yM
It posted a video showing the airport covered in thick fumes after the incident.
Arbat agricultural airport, 27 km east of the city of Sulaymaniyah, serves as a counter-terrorism training camp. In July, Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) leader Bafel Talabani attended a military showcase of the Sulaymaniyah-based General Directorate of Counter-terrorism at the airport.
Sulaymaniyah province has in recent months become target to Turkish attacks as senior Turkish officials claimed that the province has turned into a hotbed for the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), designated a "terrorist group" by Ankara.
