The US embassy in Baghdad, Iraq, was hit in an attack on Saturday following strikes that killed two members of a powerful Iran-backed group in the capital, security sources said.

Iraq, long a proxy battleground between the United States and Iran, was quickly dragged into the Middle East war triggered by US and Israeli strikes on Iran on Feb 28.

A cloud of black smoke rose above the US diplomatic mission shortly after the sound of explosions on Saturday morning, pictures show.

One security official claimed a drone hit the complex, while another said a rocket had fallen near the embassy’s airbase.