A US military official told Reuters that at least seven mortars hit the US embassy compound in Baghdad early on Friday in what appeared to be the largest attack of its kind so far.

Afghan Voice Agency (AVA): Another US defense official told Reuters that US forces in Iraq and Syria were also targeted by rocket and drone attacks at least five more times on Friday; Three times at separate bases in Syria and twice at Ain al-Asad Air Base west of Baghdad.

The attacks were the most in a single day in the region since mid-October, when Iranian-backed militias began targeting US assets in Iraq and Syria over Washington's support for Israel in its war against Hamas in Gaza. was registered

US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin condemned these attacks in a call with Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammad Shia al-Sudani and identified Kataib Hezbollah and Harakat Hezbollah al-Nujaba, pro-Iranian armed groups, as the perpetrators of the recent attacks.

"The United States has the right to respond decisively to these groups," Austin told Sudanese, according to a Pentagon statement.

The attack on the embassy was the first in more than a year, apparently widening the scope of the attacks. Dozens of military bases where American forces are stationed have been attacked, and this has increased the fear of the spread of war in the region.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack on the US embassy in Baghdad, but previous attacks against US forces have been carried out by Iran-affiliated militias operating under the banner of the Islamic Resistance in Iraq.