Drone strikes residence of Kurdistan Regional Government president Barzani in Duhok

The residence of Nechirvan Barzani, president of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) in northern Iraq, was struck by a drone attack in the city of Duhok. The strike caused damage to the building but no casualties — the residence was unoccupied at the time, according to a KRG official who spoke anonymously to the Associated Press. No group immediately claimed responsibility for the attack. Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani condemned the strike as a 'heinous act' in a phone call with Barzani and announced a joint federal-KRG security and technical investigation team to identify perpetrators and 'take legal measures.' Qubad Talabani, KRG deputy PM, stated that 'armed groups operating outside state control pose a growing threat to stability in the country' — implicitly pointing toward Iranian-backed PMF/militia actors. The Kurdistan Region and Iran have a complex relationship: the KRG hosts US military assets at Erbil Air Base (previously targeted Day 29), maintains economic ties with Iran, but is under periodic pressure from IRGC-backed Iraqi militias seeking to assert dominance over the northern corridor. The Duhok strike follows the Erbil blast earlier on Day 29 (near Erbil Airport) and escalates militia pressure against KRG leadership.