Israeli Strike on Baghdad Suburb Reported; Details Conflict with Public Record

BAGHDAD, Iraq — Reports circulating in Israeli media this week claimed that Israeli forces struck a Hashd al-Shabi headquarters in a southern suburb of Baghdad on September 27, 2024. The Jerusalem Post, citing what it described as senior officials from Mossad and the Israeli military, said dozens of F-15I aircraft dropped approximately 85 bombs during the operation. The report claimed that a figure described as having led Hashd al-Shabi for more than 30 years was killed along with around 20 military commanders, including a newly appointed southern front commander identified as Ali Karki. The article said intelligence gathered from Iran was the product of a decade-long effort, and that local Lebanese Mossad agents participated in the operation by reaching target areas within minutes during the strike to place devices and assess damage. The report stated that then-Mossad chief Dedi Barnea and Air Force officials monitored the agents' safety in real time, and that the agents and Mossad received an Israeli operation and intelligence award in 2025. The claims in the article could not be independently verified. Several details, including the identification of the figure said to have been killed and the stated date, conflict with widely reported public information.