4 explosions heard in Iraq's Erbil: AFP journalists

At least four explosions were heard on Wednesday in the city of Erbil in the autonomous Kurdistan region, AFP journalists reported.

It was not immediately clear what the target was. From a suburb of Erbil, the capital of the Kurdistan region, AFP journalists saw interceptions of projectiles over the city, which is home to a major U.S. consulate complex, while its airport houses U.S.-led coalition troops.

Iraq was drawn into the Middle East war after having long been a proxy battleground between the United States and Iran.

Strikes have targeted Iran-backed groups, which in turn have claimed daily attacks on U.S. interests in Iraq and across the region.

Since the start of the war, the coalition's air defenses have repeatedly downed drones over Erbil.

In the past few days daily explosions have been heard over the city, although mostly in the evening.

On Tuesday night, the powerful Iran-backed armed group Kataeb Hezbollah condemned the U.S. presence in Iraq and demanded that every "foreign soldier" leave the country.

The group, which has been designated a terrorist organization by Washington, is part of an umbrella movement known as the Islamic Resistance in Iraq, which has been claiming daily attacks on U.S. interests in Iraq and the region, and which has always demanded the withdrawal of U.S. troops from the country.