ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq – The two “reconnaissance drones” that were shot down over Baghdad’s heavily fortified Green Zone on Tuesday were intercepted by Iraqi air defense systems, a security source said, with investigations into the matter underway. 

Two drones were intercepted over Baghdad’s Green Zone on Tuesday, with Iraqi authorities promptly launching an investigation to uncover “details about the drones and their sources,” according to the Security Media Cell. 

“The two reconnaissance drones were downed by Iraqi air defense systems,” an informed security source told The New Region. 

No casualties or material damage were reported, the source said, adding that the drones were allegedly flown over the area “in preparation for an attack.” 

The official did not disclose the exact air defense system but said that it was “old” batteries present in the area that previously required the US-led coalition’s approval to be operated. 

“Since the coalition withdrew, Iraq now does not need further approval to use these systems,” he said. 

The Green Zone in Baghdad houses the administrative nerve of the Iraqi government, including the prime minister’s office, parliament, and diplomatic missions, such as the large US embassy compound. It also contains the headquarters of many political parties. 

According to the source, factions within the Islamic Resistance in Iraq (IRI), an umbrella network of Iran-aligned Iraqi Shiite armed groups linked to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), were the operators of the drones. 

The IRI has launched hundreds of drones and missiles at US interests in Iraq and across the region since the onset of the US-Iran war in February. 

In early August, Iraqi counterterrorism forces dismantled a network and seized drones in its possession that were allegedly set to be used to “carry out attacks with specific targets,” the government said.

The New Region's Daroon Malanaji contributed to this report from Baghdad.