{"id":4236,"date":"2026-05-18T07:57:46","date_gmt":"2026-05-18T07:57:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.worldwatchalert.com\/?p=4236"},"modified":"2026-05-18T07:57:47","modified_gmt":"2026-05-18T07:57:47","slug":"report-claims-israel-operated-two-covert-bases-in-iraqi-desert-nyt","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.worldwatchalert.com\/?p=4236","title":{"rendered":"Report Claims Israel Operated Two Covert Bases in Iraqi Desert: NYT"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The Israeli forces operated at least two covert bases in Iraq\u2019s western desert, which were allegedly used by Tel Aviv to support military operations against Iran during the 12-day conflict in June 2025 as well as the ongoing war with Tehran, the New York Times reported.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to the report published by the New York Times, one of the bases was discovered by accident when an Iraqi shepherd stumbled upon what is described as a closely guarded Israeli military installation hidden in the desert. His family believes that this discovery ultimately cost him his life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The newspaper stated that the slain shepherd had contacted Iraq\u2019s regional military command to report what he had witnessed, including soldiers, helicopters, and tents clustered around a landing strip. The NYT report also confirmed an earlier report by the Wall Street Journal, which had already highlighted the existence of one Israeli outpost in Iraq.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Following the shepherd\u2019s report, the Iraqi army reportedly dispatched a reconnaissance unit to investigate the area. However, the unit came under attack, resulting in the death of one soldier, injuries to two others, and the destruction of two vehicles, forcing the troops to retreat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In its public statement, Iraq\u2019s Joint Operations Command said that \u201cforeign\u201d forces had attacked its soldiers and confirmed that a complaint had been submitted to the United Nations Security Council. However, according to the report, in private communications, the chief of staff of Iraq\u2019s armed forces, Gen Abdul-Amir Yarallah, contacted US military counterparts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The report quoted an Iraqi general as saying that US officials confirmed the force involved was not American, leading Iraqi authorities to conclude that it was Israeli.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Despite the developments, the Iraqi government has not officially acknowledged the presence of Israeli bases, as admitting such outposts remains politically sensitive. Iraq does not have diplomatic relations with Israel, and public sentiment largely considers Israel an adversary.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The New York Times further reported that Israeli forces operated two bases intermittently for more than a year, both located in Iraq\u2019s western desert region.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Regional security officials told the newspaper that the discovered base had been established before the current conflict and was later used during the 12-day war against Iran in June 2025. One official said Israeli forces began preparing the makeshift base as early as late 2024, with the objective of reducing the distance Israeli aircraft would need to travel to reach targets in Iran.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to the report, the United States had been aware of the existence of these bases since June 2025 or possibly earlier. This, the report suggested, raises questions about whether Washington withheld information from Iraq regarding the presence of hostile forces on its territory.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The report also added that during both the brief war last year and the ongoing conflict, two Iraqi security officials told the New York Times that Washington pressured Iraq to shut down its radar systems to protect US aircraft, making Baghdad more dependent on US forces to monitor hostile activity in its airspace.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Israeli forces operated at least two covert bases in Iraq\u2019s western desert, which were allegedly used by Tel Aviv to support military operations against Iran during the 12-day conflict… <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4237,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[2221,52,2195],"class_list":["post-4236","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-world","tag-iraqi-desert","tag-israel","tag-new-york-times"],"yoast_head":"\nReport Claims Israel Operated Two Covert Bases in Iraqi Desert: NYT - World Watch Alert<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The New York Times reports that Israel allegedly operated two covert bases in Iraq\u2019s western desert used in operations against Iran, with claims of a fatal discovery by an Iraqi shepherd and regional security concerns.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.worldwatchalert.com\/?p=4236\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Report Claims Israel Operated Two Covert Bases in Iraqi Desert: NYT - 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