On Monday night, a rocket attack struck Ain al-Asad Airbase in Iraq, where a Polish military contingent is stationed, public broadcaster Polish Radio’s IAR news agency reported.
“A few hours ago, a rocket attack struck the U.S. airbase at Ain al-Asad in Iraq, where our Polish contingent is also stationed," Jacek Siewiera, head of the Polish president's National Security Bureau (BBN), said via social media on Monday morning.
"No Polish civilian or military personnel were harmed in the attack," he added, warning that "the situation in the Middle East is very tense."
Polish Defense Minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz said the authorities in Warsaw were "closely monitoring the situation in the Middle East."
The attack targeted the American part of the base, which did not house Polish soldiers or civilian personnel, according to reports.
In the wake of the attack, Polish troops in Iraq and Lebanon have begun operating under heightened security measures, officials said.
The Polish military contingent in Lebanon supports the UN Interim Force and provides security for the Polish embassy.
In Iraq, Polish soldiers are part of the Global Coalition against ISIS and, since 2017, have been training Iraqi soldiers in the maintenance and repair of Soviet-era military equipment.
This contingent, consisting of up to 350 soldiers and civilian personnel, operates in Jordan, Qatar and Kuwait.
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Source: IAR/BBN/MON/PAP
