BAGHDAD: Drones struck oilfields in Iraqi Kurdistan on Thursday, with officials pointing to Iran-backed militias as the likely source of attacks this week that have slashed the region’s oil output by more than half.

These are the first such attacks on oilfields in the region and coincide with the first in seven months on shipping in the Red Sea by Houthi fighters in Yemen.

Thursday’s strike hit an oilfield operated by Norway’s DNO in Tawke, in the Zakho area, the region’s counter-terrorism service said.

It was the week’s second strike on a site operated by DNO, which operates the Tawke and Peshkabour oilfields in the Zakho area that borders Turkiye.

No group has claimed responsibility for four consecutive days of attacks, but security officials said the drones came from areas controlled by Iran-backed militias.

Iran backs fighters groups that are part of the Islamic Resistance in Iraq, a collection of about 10 hardline armed factions that command about 50,000 fighters and arsenals.

They have claimed responsibility for dozens of missile and drone attacks on Israel and US forces in Iraq and Syria since the Gaza war eru­pted in 2023.

Published in Dawn, July 18th, 2025