A drone was shot down near the US embassy in Baghdad on Tuesday, triggering three loud explosions near the heavily fortified Green Zone, Iraqi security officials said.
Iraq's Security Media Cell said in a brief statement that the explosions were caused by the interception of a drone near the Green Zone, which houses the US embassy and several government institutions.
Security sources in Baghdad told The New Arab that two surveillance drones had approached the US embassy compound before being intercepted by its C-RAM air defence system.
The sources said Iraqi authorities had launched an investigation but had not yet established where the drones were launched from.
The incident comes as the Iraqi government continues efforts to persuade armed factions to surrender their weapons and bring all military capabilities under state control.
Several factions have agreed to hand over their weapons, but others have refused, including four groups operating under the umbrella of the Islamic Resistance in Iraq.
They are Kataib Hezbollah, Kataib Sayyid al-Shuhada, Harakat al-Nujaba and Harakat al-Awfiya.
Security sources told The New Arab that they suspected the drones belonged to factions opposed to disarmament, although no group had claimed responsibility.
The sources said the factions continued to regard the US embassy as an occupation base and possessed surveillance and drone capabilities unmatched by other local Iraqi groups.
Last week, the four factions accused Washington of violating Iraqi sovereignty and failing to honour its commitments to Baghdad.
In a joint statement, they criticised restrictions on airports and border crossings with Iran, arguing that such decisions were being dictated by the United States.
They also questioned whether Iraq could exercise genuine sovereignty while major national decisions remained subject to foreign influence.
Earlier, Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi announced that three of five armed factions that had agreed to surrender their weapons had already done so, while negotiations continued with the remaining two.
"Five factions agreed to hand over their weapons, and three have already done so, while dialogue continues with the others," Zaidi said during a meeting with tribal leaders, according to his office.
Iraqi researcher Mujashaa al-Tamimi told The New Arab that the use of surveillance drones could be intended to signal to Washington that armed factions remained active and capable of carrying out operations.
However, he stressed that this interpretation depended on whether the drones had actually been launched by those groups.
Tamimi warned that the renewed use of drones could signal another period of heightened tensions in Baghdad.