ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq – Iraq's Joint Operations Command on Tuesday said that an attack on a Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) position in Kirkuk, in which four fighters were killed, represents “a blatant attack on Iraq.”

Kataib al-Imam Ali, which makes up the PMF's 40th Brigade, on Tuesday said that “a cowardly American attack” targeting one of its bases in Kirkuk's Dibis had killed four of its fighters.

Shortly after the pro-Iran group's announcement, Iraq's Joint Operations Command condemned the attack. “This targeting does not represent an attack on a specific position, force, or headquarters, but rather a blatant attack on Iraq,” the military said in a statement.

On Saturday, another position of Kataib al-Imam Ali was attacked in the Qayyarah town south of Mosul, in which at least one person was killed, according to the Security Media Cell.

Pro-Iran groups in Iraq have been repeatedly targeted since the breakout of the US-Israeli war on Iran in late February, with several casualties among their ranks.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Monday held a phone call with Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia' al-Sudani, in which he condemned the recent “terrorist” attacks on Iraq and the Kurdistan Region, which he blamed on Iran and its affiliated armed groups.

Iran-backed Iraqi factions have claimed responsibility for several recent attacks on US interests in Iraq and the Kurdistan Region, including the US Embassy in Baghdad, the Consulate General in Erbil, and American military bases.

The attacks have also targeted bases ofIranian-Kurdish opposition groups, the Turkish consulate in Sulaimani, the Emirati consulate in Erbil, and civilian infrastructure like hotels and telecommunication towers.

At least three people have so far been killed in the attacks on the Kurdistan Region: Two fighters of Iranian-Kurdish opposition groups, and an airport security personnel in Erbil.

The US has responded to the attacks by targeting the Iran-aligned groups, which includes many factions that are incorporated into the Iraqi state security apparatus as part of the PMF.

Iraq’s Joint Operations Command has so far announced at least seven people killed in the attacks, while the PMF has reported at least 10 killed since the start of the conflict.