A French soldier has been killed in Erbil in Iraqi Kurdistan, France's President Emmanuel Macron said on Friday, as a pro-Iranian armed group warned of further attacks against French interests in the region.
Chief Warrant Officer Arnaud Frion “died for France” while stationed in the Erbil region, Mr Macron said in a post on X. “This attack against our forces engaged in the fight against Daesh [ISIS] since 2015 is unacceptable,” he said.
The presence of French soldiers in Iraq is “strictly within the framework of the fight against terrorism”, he added. “The war in Iran cannot justify such attacks.”
The French Defence Ministry said that one drone was involved in the attack on a base in Mala Qara, Makhmour, about 40km south-west of Erbil. The local governor had previously said two drones were involved in the attack.
Seven soldiers were hurt, including Chief Warrant Officer Frion, who died "despite rapid treatment by the medical teams present," the ministry said. The six other soldiers are to be repatriated to France.
"The French detachment present on site is conducting training activities for several Iraqi units, in support of the fight against terrorism, within the framework of Operation Inherent Resolve," the statement said.
The attack risks drawing France further into the wider regional conflict triggered by the US-Israeli war on Iran despite Mr Macron repeatedly saying that his country is acting solely to defend itself and its partners. The last time a French soldier was killed on duty in Iraq was in 2023 in an operation claimed by ISIS.
In a press conference with Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Mr Macron vowed to "continue to demonstrate composure, calm, determination, and reliability towards our partners, to protect our citizens, and to defend our interests and security".
France was among the first countries to deploy air defence to Gulf states to help them defend themselves in the face of sIranian ballistic and drone attacks after the US and Israel jointly launched an offensive on Iran on January 28.
Authorities in the Kurdistan Regional Government declined to comment on the incident to The National.
However, speaking on the wave of attacks in Iraq and the region a Kurdish official told The National that the KRG is heavily impacted by the confrontation between US, Israel and Iran.
"The widening geographic scope of the strikes, the involvement of foreign military personnel, and the impact on civilian areas have heightened concerns about regional stability, civilian safety, and the risk of further escalation in the coming days and weeks," said the official.
French aircraft carrier
An Iranian-backed Iraqi group, called Ashab Al Kahf, said on Friday it would target “all French interests in Iraq and region”. The warning follows the deployment of the French aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle to the Eastern Mediterranean.
“Following the arrival of France's aircraft carrier in the area of operations of the US Central Command and its involvement in operations, we declare from this night that all French interests in Iraq and the region will be targeted,” said the group in a statement on Telegram.
Ashab Al Kahf urged residents to stay at least 500 metres away from a base in Iraqi Kurdistan where French troops are stationed, without directly claiming responsibility for any attacks.
An Italian base in Erbil was targeted by a drone strike on Thursday but no casualties were reported.
Since 2015, French forces have been stationed in the region as part of an international coalition against ISIS. Their presence in Iraq is part of what the French military calls Operation Chammal. They provide training and air support to local military forces.
There are 950 military personnel engaged in Operation Chammal in Iraq, according to the French Ministry of Defence. The exact number of French soldiers in Iraq is not publicly available.
France provides a two-year training programme for Iraqi soldiers, French media reported. Paris also currently heads the Nato mission in Iraq which has several hundred military personnel, mostly from Europe, deployed to train Iraqi security forces.
Chief Warrant Officer Frion was 43 years old and belonged to the 7th Alpine Chasseurs Battalion in Varces in south-east France. He had distinguished himself during deployments in Afghanistan and Mali, the French army said. He had been deployed in Iraq since January 24. He was married and had one child.
Despite his death, it is understood that France is expected to stay deployed in Iraq. France has in total dispatched eight frigates from the Eastern Mediterranean to the Red Sea since the start of the war and is working on setting up with partners including Europeans, Asian and Gulf countries a naval mission that could escort ships through the Strait of Hormuz. Iran has not formally announced the closure of the Strait but has attacked ships using the narrow, strategic passageway, causing oil prices to soar.
