Iraqi security sources have reported clashes between Iraqi forces and suspected US special forces following a helicopter landing in remote desert areas spanning the provinces of Anbar, Najaf, and Karbala, leaving one Iraqi soldier dead and two others wounded.

The Iraqi Joint Operations Command confirmed on Wednesday that an Iraqi military unit came under attack during a search operation in the desert area between Karbala and Najaf.

In an official statement, the command said that “a force from the Karbala Operations Command, while conducting a search operation in the desert area between the provinces of Karbala and Najaf at dawn today, was subjected to an airstrike and gunfire,” resulting in the death of one soldier and injuries to two others. The command described the incident as “reprehensible and deplorable.”

Authorities announced that an investigative committee has been formed to determine the circumstances surrounding the incident and to take “appropriate legal action,” stating that the event “constitutes a violation and an unjustified act” that will be handled in accordance with military laws and procedures.

Security officials told Rudaw that the incident followed the landing of US special forces in remote desert areas near the intersection of Anbar, Najaf, and Karbala provinces.

A senior security source in Karbala said the landing reportedly occurred in the Shannana area, a desert region located between the al-Nukhaib subdistrict of Anbar and the provinces of Najaf and Karbala. Iraqi forces responding to the unexpected landing reportedly engaged in clashes with the arriving troops.

Sources in Rutba district of Anbar province said US forces landed in several strategic desert locations early Wednesday and later established positions at two sites inside the district. When Iraqi border guard units attempted to approach one of the landing sites, they were reportedly met with gunfire, leaving several border guards wounded and destroying four Iraqi border guard vehicles.

According to the same sources, when Iraqi forces later moved closer to investigate, an exchange of fire occurred that resulted in the death of one Iraqi soldier and injuries to two others.

Former Iraqi lawmaker Hassan al‑Janabi, who heads the State Affairs Office of the Hikma Movement, confirmed to Rudaw that the forces involved were American.

“Those forces are American and landed in the desert areas between Najaf and Karbala,” Janabi said. “When an Iraqi force approached them at a distance of two kilometers, they were fired upon by the Americans, resulting in the martyrdom of one soldier and the wounding of two others, and two Iraqi army Humvees were burned.”

Janabi added that it remains unclear whether the landing was part of a military operation or an intelligence-gathering mission, though officials believe the forces involved were American rather than Israeli.

According to security information obtained by Rudaw, the landing site lies about 40 kilometers from the al-Nukhaib subdistrict and near the Chlabat area on the border of the Rutba district. The remote desert zone is located roughly 100 kilometers from the center of Rutba and near the Saudi border.

The area falls within the operational responsibility of units affiliated with the Popular Mobilization Forces, including the Imam Ali Division (Brigade 2) and the Abbas Brigade, which operate in the deserts of Najaf and Nukhaib.

An Iraqi security report cited by Rudaw said the first alert about the presence of unidentified forces came from a shepherd who reported seeing an unknown unit in the Shannana area, approximately 40 kilometers inside the Nukhaib desert.

The report said the force arrived using multiple helicopters and several Humvee military vehicles.

Former Iraqi military spokesperson Abdulkarim Khalaf told local media that Iraqi security units were dispatched after receiving reports from local residents about the presence of “foreign forces” that had landed by air.

He said Iraqi troops moved to investigate but were fired upon from a distance of approximately 18 kilometers from the landing site.

“The matter is being followed up at the highest level in the Joint Operations Command,” Khalaf said.

Rutba district, the largest district in Iraq by area, occupies a strategic position in the country’s far west. It includes the al-Walid and al-Nukhaib subdistricts, with Nukhaib bordering Saudi Arabia.