Iraqi airspace must not be used against neighbours: Iraq PM tells U.S.’ Rubio

Iraq’s Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani told U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio Tuesday (March 10, 2026) that Iraq should not be used as a launch pad for attacks in the Middle East war.

Iraq neighbours Iran, against which the United States and Israel launched massive strikes on February 28, as well as the Gulf, which the Islamic republic has hit with missile and drone attacks.

Israel-Iran war updates on March 10, 2026

Within hours of the start of the war, fighter jets and missiles coming from every direction filled Iraq’s airspace.

Mr. Sudani stressed in a phone call with Mr. Rubio “the importance of ensuring that Iraqi airspace, territory, and waters are not used for any military action targeting neighbouring countries or the region,” the Prime Minister’s media office said.

Mr. Sudani rejected “any attempt to drag the country into ongoing conflicts,” as well as “violations of its airspace by any party.”

Iraq, long a proxy battleground between Washington and Tehran, was drawn into the war from the outset, with strikes blamed on the U.S. and Israel targeting Iran-backed groups, which in turn have since claimed attacks on U.S. bases in Iraq and the wider region.

U.S. State Department spokesman Tommy Pigott said that Mr. Rubio “strongly condemned terrorist attacks by Iran and Iran-aligned terrorist militia groups in Iraq,” including the Kurdistan region.

He urged Iraq to take “all possible measures to safeguard U.S. diplomatic personnel and facilities.”

On Saturday (March 7, 2026), air defence systems intercepted rockets fired at the U.S. embassy in Baghdad.

U.S. air defences now intercept drones almost daily over Erbil, the capital of Kurdistan, which also hosts a US consulate complex.