Iran says it destroyed an Israeli “spy headquarters” in a missile attack located near the US consulate in the northern Iraqi city of Irbil.

The attack has angered officials in Iraq who condemned it as an act of “aggression” that led to civilian casualties in residential areas.

Iran claimed the “HQ” was being used by Israel as “a centre for terror attacks planning in the region, especially against our beloved country”.

The attack was “in response to the recent evil acts of the Zionist regime in martyring” Iran’s Revolutionary Guard troops, according to Iranian state media.

Israel has not acknowledged the attack in Irbil, or commented yet on the allegation that the target was linked to Mossad, its intelligence agency.

It has been engaged in a shadow war with Iran for years, with tit-for-tat strikes hitting positions around the Middle East.

The US also strongly condemned Iran’s strikes as “reckless and imprecise,” confirming that no US personnel or facilities were hit or damaged in the attacks, said Arienne Watson, a spokesman for the White House National Security Council.

It was not immediately possible to independently assess what damage was sustained after Iran’s attacks.

Iraq has said it will file a complaint with the UN Security Council over Iran’s attack, which killed at least six civilians.

In a separate statement, Iran said it also lobbed ballistic missiles at what it called “terrorist operations” linked to the extremist group Islamic State in northern Syria, according to Iranian state media.

Iran’s strikes from late Monday night come after fears that Israel’s war in Gaza against Hamas, a terrorist group, could escalate into a devastating regional war.

Since war broke out in October, a number of Iranian-backed groups in the region have launched numerous attacks over what they say is in retaliation for American support of Israel, to pressure Israel into a ceasefire, and in solidarity with Palestinians suffering in Gaza under Israeli bombardment.

In Iraq and Syria, Iran-backed militias have launched frequent near-daily drone attacks on bases housing US forces.

Iran-backed Hezbollah, a militant group that wields significant political power in Lebanon, has fired rockets along its shared border with Israel.

Further afield, Houthi rebels have launched attacks in the Red Sea, which hugs the west coast of Yemen, where the group is based.

Those attacks have largely halted commercial shipping in a key waterway through which nearly 15 per cent of all global trade passes.

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards have vowed that its operations would continue “until the last drop of martyrs’ blood are avenged”.