18.05.2026 00:20
The US press alleged that Israel established two secret military outposts in Iraq's western desert for use in operations against Iran, and that these bases were also used during the 12-day war in June 2025. The report claimed that an Iraqi shepherd who accidentally stumbled upon one of the bases in the desert was silenced by a helicopter attack, and that Washington was aware of the situation, with a second secret outpost also existing in the region.
It has been alleged that Israel established a "second secret outpost" in Iraq's desert region for use in attacks on Iran.
HELICOPTER ATTACKED THE SHEPHERD WHO FOUND THE OUTPOST
In a report by the New York Times (NYT) citing unnamed regional and Iraqi officials, it was claimed that Israel kept two outposts it set up in Iraq's desert region secret for months.
The report, based on eyewitness accounts, included an allegation that on March 3, a shepherd named Awad al-Shammari was attacked by a helicopter while moving with his vehicle near the desert area of Nuhayib in western Iraq.
The report claimed that the 29-year-old shepherd "stumbled upon a secret fortified Israeli military secret in the Iraqi desert," and according to Shammari's family, this cost him his life.
USED IN THE 12-DAY WAR
The report stated that Shammari contacted Iraqi military officials to report what he saw, and according to senior Iraqi and regional officials, "Israel operated an outpost there to support military attacks against Iran."
Meanwhile, according to regional security officials, the outpost that Shammari encountered predated the war that began with the US/Israel attacks on Iran on February 28, and was used during the 12-day war between Israel and Iran in June 2025.
According to a regional official, the report claimed that Israeli forces began preparations to build the outpost from late 2024, and citing Iraqi officials, it was argued that there was a second secret outpost in the country's western desert.
ALLEGATION THAT THE US WAS AWARE OF THE ISRAELI OUTPOST
The report claimed that the outpost Shammari encountered "was known to Washington since June 2025 or possibly earlier."
The report included Iraqi Major General Ali al-Hamdani's statement that "the army suspected an Israeli presence in the desert more than a month before the shepherd's discovery," and an Iraqi official was said to have "confirmed the existence of the second outpost in the western desert region."
The report assessed, "The outpost in Nuhayib is no longer active, but the status of the other Israeli outpost in Iraq is unknown."