Alarms allegedly went off at the base and a plume of smoke rose from inside the US military wing following a purported attack by multiple drones. The attack may be ongoing.
The severity of the damage, injuries, or casualties has yet to be reported.
No group has taken responsibility for the purported attack.
The base was once one of the main locations for American mercenaries and military contractors.
The Balad Air Base is an Iraqi Air Force facility built in the early 1980s during Sadam Hussein's reign. It was originally named Al-Bakr Air Base, after Iraqi President Ahmed Hassan Bakr Omar. During the Iraq war, it was renamed Balad Air Base after it was captured by US military forces.