Incident Summary:

11/17/2020: Assailants launched rockets targeting the United States Embassy which landed in Rusafa, Baghdad, Iraq. This was one of three attacks in this area on this date. One child was killed and five civilians were injured across the three attacks. Ashab al-Kahf claimed responsibility for the incident and stated that the attacks were carried out in retaliation for the arrest of three of its members on November 16th.

GTD ID:
202011170023

When:
2020-11-17

Country:
Iraq

Region:
Middle East & North Africa

Province/administrative
region/u.s. state:

Baghdad

City:
Baghdad

Location Details:
The incident occurred in the Rusafa neighborhood.

Attack Information
Type of Attack (more) Bombing/Explosion
Successful Attack? (more) Yes
Target Information (more)
Target Type: Government (Diplomatic)
Name of Entity United States Department of State
Specific Description United States Embassy
Nationality of Target United States
Target Type: Private Citizens & Property
Name of Entity Not Applicable
Specific Description Civilians
Nationality of Target Iraq
Additional Information
Hostages No
Ransom No
Property Damage Unknown
Extent of Property Damage Unknown
Value of Property Damage Unknown
Weapon Information
Type Sub-type
Explosives Projectile (rockets, mortars, RPGs, etc.)
Weapon Details
A 122-mm Grad rocket launched from a truck was used in the attack.
Additional Information
Suicide Attack?No
Part of Multiple Incident?Yes
Criterion 1 (more) Yes
Criterion 2 (more) Yes
Criterion 3 (more) Yes
Doubt Terrorism Proper (more) No
Additional Information Casualty numbers conflict across sources. Following GTD protocol, the majority reliable estimates are reported here. Casualty numbers represent a division of the total number of those killed and wounded across incidents 202011170010, 202011170023 and 202011170024.
Perpetrator Group Information
Group Name Claimed Responsibility
Ashab al-Kahf Yes (Confirmed: Unknown; Mode: Posted to website, blog, etc.)
Perpetrator Statistics
Number of Perpetrators Unknown
Number of Captured Perpetrators 0
Casualty Information
Total Number of Casualties 0 Fatalities / 2 Injured
Total Number of Fatalities 0
Number of U.S. Fatalities 0
Number of Perpetrator Fatalities 0
Total Number of Injured 2
Number of U.S. Injured 0
Number of Perpetrators Injured 0
Sources
"Child killed, five injured as rockets target Baghdad's Green Zone," Deutsche Presse-Agentur, November 17, 2020.
"A child was killed and 5 wounded in the bombing of Al-Khadra," Al-Sharqiya, November 18, 2020.
"Rockets fall inside Baghdad's Green Zone, child killed - military," Reuters UK, November 17, 2020.