The Israeli occupation successfully penetrated Iraq’s western desert and established a temporary secret military base during the recent war with Iran, with the objective of providing logistical and operational support while reducing the vast distance separating Israeli aircraft from targets deep inside Iranian territory, estimated at more than 1,000 miles.
The incident has raised serious questions regarding how such a breach became possible, and how geography, security negligence, and intelligence failures contributed to the operation.
Below are the main factors that reportedly enabled the infiltration.
Vast Desert Terrain
Iraq’s western desert is an enormous, sparsely populated, and remote region, providing an ideal environment for concealing military movements far from public visibility.
The Iraqi western desert is estimated to cover approximately 240,000 square kilometres, accounting for more than half of Iraq’s total land area.
The scale and isolation of the terrain reportedly allowed occupation forces to move and establish positions with limited risk of immediate detection.
American Support and Cover
The operation was reportedly carried out with prior American knowledge, providing what sources describe as significant logistical and security cover for the occupation to establish a foothold in the area without immediate regional or international objections.
This alleged American backing is viewed as one of the central factors that enabled the operation to proceed despite the strategic sensitivity of Iraqi territory.
Air Superiority and Rapid Strikes
Occupation aircraft reportedly carried out air strikes targeting Iraqi army units and Counter Terrorism Service forces after local shepherds alerted authorities to suspicious activity near the site.
The strikes reportedly occurred when Iraqi forces approached the area to conduct reconnaissance operations.
According to the reports, these attacks prevented Iraqi forces from uncovering details about the site during the early stages of the operation.
Security and Intelligence Failures
Reports also point to major security and intelligence gaps that contributed to the breach.
Although a local shepherd reportedly detected the movements and informed Iraqi authorities, the identity of the infiltrating force remained unclear for a significant period, creating hesitation among security agencies in responding decisively due to a lack of reliable information.
The uncertainty surrounding the incident reportedly delayed effective field action and allowed the operation to continue.
Weak Air Defence Capabilities
The war also exposed major weaknesses within Iraq’s air defence systems, which reportedly struggled to detect foreign aircraft and missiles repeatedly violating Iraqi airspace.
According to the reports, these deficiencies enabled occupation forces to carry out the infiltration and establish a temporary base deep inside the desert without being intercepted.
Iraqi Denial
Despite the circulating reports, a senior Iraqi security official denied on Sunday, in statements to Anadolu Agency, claims that “Israel” had established a secret military site in Iraq’s desert to support air attacks against Iran.
The official stated that Iraqi forces had confronted what he described as a “mysterious” airborne landing operation in the Al Nukhayb desert area in central Iraq during March, adding that the incident had been dealt with at the time.
