Iraq slams Bahrain statement on paramilitary base attacks

Iraq has condemned comments by Bahrain's top diplomat describing alleged Israeli strikes on the powerful Hashed al-Shaabi paramilitary force as "self-defence."

A string of Hashed al-Shaabi bases across Iraq have been hit by explosions and drone sightings over the past five weeks that the force has blamed on Israel and the US.

Earlier this week, Bahraini Foreign Minister Khaled bin Ahmed Al-Khalifa accused Iran of "declaring war on us" through allied armed groups, including the Hashed al-Shaabi in Iraq.

"Whoever strikes them and destroys their stacks of equipment cannot be blamed. This is self-defence," he wrote on Twitter.

The comments prompted a sharp response from the Iraqi foreign ministry in an online statement late Wednesday.

"The foreign ministry rejects and condemns the Bahraini foreign minister's tweet about the recent attacks on Arab territories and the Popular Mobilisation Forces (Hashed) by Zionist enemy under the pretext of self-defence," it wrote.

It was the first time ...