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An oil field in Iraq's Dohuk province was set ablaze Tuesday after being struck by a drone. It is the latest in a series of similar attacks launched recently against oil facilities in northern Iraq's semi-autonomous Kurdish region. No group has claimed responsibility for the attack. The attack came the same day Iraq signed an agreement with the oil field's operator, US-based HKN Energy Ltd, for investment in a field at another location.

HKN Energy confirmed in a statement that “an explosion occurred” Tuesday morning at one of its production facilities in the Sarang field in Dohuk province. “All personnel have been safely accounted for, and no injuries have been reported,” it said. “However, the facility remains on fire, and emergency response teams are actively working to contain the situation.” It said the cause of the explosion was under investigation and that operations were suspended. The recent attacks have heightened tensions between the central government in Baghdad and regional Kurdish authorities. The strikes have caused material damage but no casualties.

The Kurdish region's Ministry of Natural Resources said in a statement that Tuesday's explosion was caused by a drone strike and that it came after an attack on the Khurmala oil field, in Irbil province, on Monday. The ministry said it "strongly condemns and denounces these acts of terrorism against the Kurdistan Region's vital economic infrastructure”. The Kurdish regional government urged the federal government to “take all urgent and necessary measures to prevent the repetition of such attacks, identify the parties responsible, and hold them accountable”.

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The US Embassy in Baghdad also issued a statement condemning the recent attacks. “The Government of Iraq must exercise its authority to prevent armed actors from launching these attacks against sites within its own territory, including locations where Iraqi and international companies have invested in Iraq's future,” it said. Iraq's Prime Minister Mohammad Shia al-Sudani met with the vice president of HKN Energy on Tuesday during the signing of a preliminary agreement for investment in the Hamrin oil field, in Salahuddin province.

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Earlier this month, the Kurdish regional government accused the Popular Mobilisation Forces — a coalition of Iran-allied militias that are officially under the control of the Iraqi military — of carrying out drone attacks. The Iraqi army said the accusation was “issued in the absence of evidence” and said it could “provide hostile parties with justifications to undermine Iraq's stability”. Iran-backed armed groups have periodically attacked US bases in Iraq and Syria. During last month's Israel-Iran war, some of them threatened to target US interests and bases in the region if Washington got involved.
 
(Note: Except for the headline, this article has not been edited by The Daily Jagran and has been published through a syndicated feed. Source - PTI)