Powerful explosion rocks Soran in northern Iraq

A huge blast and fire at a US airbase in Erbil International Airport on March 1, 2026. Baghdad (IraqiNews.com) – A powerful explosion was reported near the Soran district in Erbil in the Kurdistan region of Iraq on Tuesday evening, according to Al-Arabiya News. Locals and reporters confirmed that a big explosion rocked the district. Media outlets first stated that the cause of the explosion was unclear, while preliminary local reports pointed to possible suicide drone activity in the area. Soran and the greater Erbil area have experienced increased instability. On Monday morning, rocket attacks targeted three residential camps belonging to Iranian Kurdish opposition groups east of Sulaymaniyah in Iraqi Kurdistan. Iraqi Kurdistan’s security agency, the Asayish, said that five rockets landed in different areas of the region around 3:10 a.m. local time, noting that no injuries were reported. The Asayish did not specify the type of rockets used or who launched them, and no group has yet claimed responsibility for the attacks. Official Iraqi or Kurdish security has yet to provide a definite statement confirming the actual number of casualties, the targeted facility, or the precise source of the Tuesday evening explosion.