Paris, 13 March 2026 (dpa/MIA) - French President Emmanuel Macron early on Friday said that a French soldier died during an attack in the Erbil region of Iraq.

Macron said in a post on social media platform X that "numerous of our service people were wounded" in the attack.

"This attack against our forces, which have been engaged in the fight against Daesh since 2015, is unacceptable," Macron said, using a derogatory term to refer to the Islamic State extremist group.

"Their presence in Iraq is strictly within the framework of the fight against terrorism," Macron said. "The war in Iran cannot justify such attacks."

It was initially unclear who was behind the attack.

Earlier, the French Defence Ministry said a drone attack injured six French soldiers who were taking part in counter-terrorism training with Iraqi partners. The injured were immediately taken to the nearest medical facility, the ministry said.

The governor of Erbil said that two drones were involved in the strike, according to the Le Parisien newspaper. The attack reportedly targeted a base about 40 kilometres south-west of Erbil, the capital of Iraq's autonomous Kurdistan region.

The United States and Israel launched a large-scale bombing campaign against Iran on February 28. Tehran has retaliated by targeting US bases across the region as well as civilian sites, embroiling the Middle East in an escalating war.

Photo: MIA archive