Iraqi Officials Confirm Second Israeli Outpost in Iraqi Desert
Two Iraqi officials, including senior Wisdom Movement official Hassan Fadaam, said in an interview on 17 May that Israel built two clandestine outposts in the Iraqi desert in late 2024 — not one, as previously reported by the Wall Street Journal. The first outpost, near al Nukhayb in Anbar Province, was used by the IDF for air support, refuelling and “medical treatment” during the 12-day war in June 2025. Israeli commando units and search-and-rescue teams were deployed there before the start of the recent US-Israeli campaign in Iran, ready to recover Israeli pilots if Iranian forces shot down Israeli fighter jets. The first outpost is no longer operational; the second outpost’s location and status remain undisclosed.
Two Iraqi security officials also said in an interview that the United States “compelled” Iraq to shut down its radars to protect US aircraft during the June 2025 war and the recent conflict, ISW reports. Iranian-backed Iraqi actors are expected to use the report alongside the disclosure of Israeli bases in Iraq to pressure the Iraqi government to pursue the purchase of advanced air defence systems, replicating calls made by several Iranian-backed Iraqi parliamentarians in June 2025 for the modernisation of Iraqi air defences and the diversification of arms supplies. The disclosure complicates Baghdad’s diplomatic position, the Wisdom Movement having historically positioned itself as a Shia-led, non-Iranian-aligned bloc within the Coordination Framework.