Erbil, Kurdistan Region – Peshawa Hawramani, spokesperson for the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), strongly refuted accusations made by "outlawed groups" that the Kurdistan Region houses Israeli headquarters and bases. The denial comes in response to the recent attack on Erbil Air Base on December 27, where armed militias employed drones and rockets, claiming their targets were Israeli military installations.

Hawramani labeled the attacks as "cowardly and terrorist acts" and emphasized that such baseless accusations aim to undermine and disrupt the stability of the Kurdistan Region.

This isn't the first time such allegations have been made against the Kurdish region. In March 2022, a joint "fact-finding committee" was established between Erbil and Baghdad to investigate alleged military links between the Kurds and Israel. This move followed a previous attack on Erbil on March 13, 2022, which an Iraqi militia had also claimed was an assault on an Israeli military post. The KRG vehemently denied these claims, with former government spokesperson Jotiar Adil stating, "There is no Israeli intelligence agency present in the Kurdistan Region."

In May 2022, the Lead Inspector General for US counter-terrorism operations in Iraq and Syria published a report, indicating that Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps claimed responsibility for the attack, describing it as targeting an Israeli intelligence outpost. However, the report clarified that the building struck was the residence of a prominent oil businessman well known to US officials.

In response to these incidents, the Iraqi Parliament passed a bill criminalizing ties with Israel in May 2022. The legislation, titled "the Banning the Normalization and Establishment of Relations with the Zionist Entity," mandates the punishment of any person or entity seeking to normalize or establish ties with Israel in any form or field. The move follows warnings from influential Shia' cleric Moqtada al-Sadr against establishing ties with Israel, echoing historical tensions between Iraq and Israel since the latter's establishment in 1948.

The Kurdistan Regional Government remains steadfast in its denial of hosting Israeli bases and condemns the recent attacks as detrimental to the peace and stability of the region.