Israel built two covert bases in Iraq to aid in its wars with Iran, and an Iraqi soldier and a civilian were killed in order to protect the secret military installations, The New York Times reported Sunday.

Earlier this month, The Wall Street Journal reported that Israel had built one base in Iraq’s western desert for use in the US-Israeli war with Iran that began in late February. Shortly afterward, what appeared to be a makeshift airstrip in a dry lakebed, some 180 kilometers (112 miles) southwest of the city of Karbala, was located by open-source intelligence analysts in satellite imagery taken just days before the war.

But Iraqi officials told the Times that Israel had maintained another base there as well, which was used during the June 2025 war with Iran as well as this year’s conflict.

Israel began building that base in late 2024, according to a regional official. The Times report said the US knew of that base, and that it is no longer operational.

According to the reports, Israel built the bases to cut down on flight time for strikes in Iran, provide medical treatment, and aid in logistics and other forms of support for the Israeli Air Force. They........

© The Times of Israel