Introduction
Iraq’s military said on Wednesday that 22 missiles were launched on the Ain al-Asad air base that houses U.S.-led coalition troops in the western Anbar province and a base in the Iraqi Kurdish capital Erbil, causing no casualties.
Two of the 17 missiles targeting Ain al-Asad did not go off, it said in a statement. The five on Erbil all targeted coalition headquarters. There were no casualties among Iraqi forces, the military said.
“Iraq was subjected between 1:45 and 2:45 this morning of 8 January 2020 to bombardment by 22 missiles; 17 missiles fell on Ain al-Asad air base including two that did not explode … and five on the city of Erbil that all fell on coalition headquarters. No casualties among Iraqi forces were recorded,” the statement said.
Towards an escalation ?
Are we heading towards an escalation ? The situation is indeed more than alarming. Moreover, the situation is now in the hand of Russia. As an ally of Tehran, Moscow has the power to worsen the situation. If Vladimir Putin decides to support Iran at all costs, it has to be said that escalation will happen.
However, if Moscow is eager to calm down its ally, global war can be avoided. The underlying question is the following one : is Russia ready to wage a war with the US ?
