ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq - Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia' al-Sudani on Wednesday held a phone call with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, telling him that Iranian strikes on Iraqi territory are "unacceptable" and Iraq will not be used as a "launching pad" for attacks on its neighbor.

Since the outbreak of the US-Israeli war on Iran, Iraq and the Kurdistan Region have been repeatedly targeted by Iranian missile and drone strikes, with US military bases and diplomatic facilities proving attractive targets for both Tehran and pro-Iran militias operating in the country.

According to Sudani's office, the premier offered Pezeshkian condolences on the death of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and stressed "Iraq's rejection and condemnation of the unjust war targeting Iran."

The prime minister also reaffirmed the government's commitment to not allowing "any party or individuals to use Iraqi territories as a launchpad for aggression against Iran," coming after widely circulated reports in US media that Washington had sought to arm Iranian Kurdish opposition groups based in the Kurdistan Region with a view to launching a cross-border ground offensive.

Such a notion was strongly dismissed by the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) and the armed groups in question.

US President Donald Trump, who had, according to reports, initially voiced his enthusiasm at the prospect, said Saturday that "we’re not looking to the Kurds going in," adding that "we don’t want to make the war any more complex than it already is."

Despite expressing his regret over the US-Israeli bombardment, Sudani told Pezeshkian that Iranian strikes on Iraq "represent a violation of Iraq's sovereignty and security, which is unacceptable and undermines the efforts that Iraq is making to end the war and return to dialogue."

The KRG has repeatedly called on Baghdad to rein in the activities of pro-Iran militias that have been targeting the Region with strikes, with President Masoud Barzani on Sunday saying that "the continuation of this warmongering will have bad consequences."

Erbil Governor Omed Khoshnaw told The New Region on Wednesday that since the beginning of the conflict, "more than 200 explosive drones have been directed at Erbil city."