Israel operated two 'covert bases' in Iraq’s desert, NYT reports

WASHINGTON: Israeli forces operated at least two covert bases in Iraq’s western desert that may have been used to support military action against Iran during the 12-day conflict in June 2025 and the continuing war with Tehran, a New York Times report carried by Dawn.

One of the bases was uncovered by chance when an Iraqi shepherd came across the site, which was being closely guarded in the desert. His family believes the discovery cost him his life.

The shepherd contacted Iraq’s regional military command to report what he had seen: soldiers, helicopters and tents clustered around a landing strip.

After receiving the report, the Iraqi army dispatched a reconnaissance unit, which came under attack. One soldier was killed, two others were wounded and two vehicles were bombed before the force withdrew.

In public, Iraq’s Joint Operations Command said “foreign” forces had attacked Iraqi soldiers and stated that complaints had been raised at the United Nations Security Council.

In private, however, the chief of staff of Iraq’s armed forces, Gen Abdul-Amir Yarallah, contacted his counterparts in the US military. Quoting an Iraqi general: "They confirmed the force is not an American force, so we understood it was Israeli."

Two bases said to have operated for more than a year

The New York Times report said the Israeli military had operated two bases intermittently for well over a year, both located in Iraq’s western desert. The finding confirmed an earlier Wall Street Journal report that had referred to one Israeli outpost in Iraq.

Regional security officials told the newspaper that the base discovered by the shepherd existed before the current conflict and was also used during the 12-day war against Tehran in June 2025.

One regional official was quoted as saying: "Israeli forces began preparing to build the makeshift base as far back as late 2024."

The outpost was intended to reduce the distance Israeli aircraft needed to travel to reach Iran.

Iraq has not publicly acknowledged the bases

Iraq’s government has still not acknowledged the Israeli bases. Such an acknowledgement would be politically sensitive because Iraq has no diplomatic relations with Israel and its population views Israel as an enemy.

The United States had known about the bases since June 2025 or possibly earlier. This would suggest Washington, which is also a key ally of Baghdad, had not informed Iraq that hostile forces were operating on its territory.

During both the brief war last year and the current conflict, two Iraqi security officials told the New York Times that Washington compelled Iraq to shut down its radars to protect US aircraft. This made Baghdad more dependent on US forces to detect hostile activity.