French soldier killed, several wounded in attack in Iraqi Kurdistan

Paris, March 13 (Saudi Arabia Breaking News) – One French soldier was killed and several others were wounded in an attack in the Erbil region of Iraqi Kurdistan, French President Emmanuel Macron said on Thursday.

Macron identified the soldier as Warrant Officer Arnaud Frion of the 7th Alpine Chasseurs Battalion based in Varces.

Frion “died for France during an attack in the Erbil region of Iraq,” Macron said in a post on X, expressing the nation’s condolences and solidarity with the soldier’s family and comrades.

Several other French soldiers were wounded in the attack, he added.

Macron said the French forces have been deployed in Iraq since 2015 as part of operations against ISIS.

“This attack against our forces, engaged in the fight against ISIS since 2015, is unacceptable,” he said.

He added that the presence of French troops in Iraq is strictly within the framework of counterterrorism operations and that the war in Iran cannot justify such attacks.