Armed Drone Hit U.S. Barracks in Iraq, Failed to Detonate

A drone laden with explosives believed to have been launched by an Iranian-backed militia crashed into the upper floor of a U.S. barracks at a base in Iraq but failed to detonate, U.S. officials said, underscoring the risks to U.S. forces in the Middle East during Israel’s war on Hamas. Had the drone exploded at Erbil air base on Oct. 25, it likely would have injured or killed U.S. troops, defense officials said. The strike has raised fears of a potential deadly attack among forces on the ground even after the Pentagon last week sent several air defense systems to the region to protect the roughly 2,500 U.S. troops in Iraq and 900 in Syria.