Early on 19 June, a suspected Iranian-backed militia group conducted a mortar attack in the Burjesia area of the Zubayr Oil Field, located 25km southwest of Basra City. At least one round damaged an accommodation building, wounding up to three local nationals. It is assessed that the intended target was likely the camp of a major international oil company and that the mortar rounds failed to hit their intended target. This aligns with current reporting regarding strained relations between the US and Iran, which has translated into a string of mortar/rocket attacks over the past month against US military and diplomatic facilities elsewhere in the country. Meanwhile, Iran and its proxies have also demonstrated intent to disrupt oil operations in the Gulf of Oman, sabotaging six oil tankers in recent weeks. As such, the threat of subsequent indirect fire targeting US and international oil assets in southern Iraq is assessed to be extant. Such activity may pose a severe collateral risk to personnel in Basra.
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