Public fury in Iraq after clashes between militia and security forces

Deadly violence fuels calls for groups to be disarmed or brought under state control

Iraqi security forces clashed with fighters from Iran-backed Kataib Hezbollah. EPA

Public anger is mounting in Iraq after clashes between security forces and gunmen from an Iran-backed militia in Baghdad left two dead.

The violence was sparked when fighters stormed a government building to forcibly reinstate a dismissed director general in southern Baghdad. Security forces responded, triggering a gun battle that killed a policeman and taxi driver who were caught in the crossfire, security authorities said.

At least 15 fighters have been arrested by the security forces, according to authorities. They are affiliated with the Popular Mobilisation Forces (PMF) – an umbrella group formed in 2014 to fight ISIS. It is composed mainly of Iran-backed militias and is integrated into Iraq's armed forces. The fighters belong to Tehran-aligned Kataib Hezbollah, which is part of the PMF, a security official said.

Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al Sudani, who is also the commander-in-chief of the armed forces, has ordered an investigation on the “circumstances surrounding the incident and how the armed force moved without orders or proper approvals, attempted to take control of a government building and opened fire on security forces”, according to a statement.

In its own statement, the PMF said it would not “tolerate any violation by any individual to the orders of security protocols”. It did not give details on the incident or the measures that will be taken.

The Co-ordination Framework, a political group consisting of mainly Iran-backed Shiite political parties and armed factions and the main backer of Mr Al Sudani, denounced the incident in an emergency meeting. “It is a breach of the law and state protocols,” it said in a statement, expressing its support for government measures to “establish security, enforce the law, and preserve the state authority”.

The Siyada coalition, led by the Sunni tycoon Khamis Al Khanjar, warned of the “dangers of unregulated arms and outlaw groups", accusing them of illegally seizing lands in southern Baghdad and causing “demographic change” by driving out Sunni families. “We have long warned that the Iraqi state cannot achieve true stability and sustainable development as long as these unregulated and illegal arms are moving freely,” it added.

Iraqi civilians have expressed frustration over the impunity of armed factions and there have been calls for them to be disarmed or brought under state control. For many people, the latest violence is a reflection of a broader collapse in state authority.

“This wasn’t just a gunfight, it was an assault on the state,” a Baghdad shop owner told The National. “The fact that an armed group can storm a public office and challenge a government appointment with weapons is proof that we’ve lost control."

During the fight against ISIS, some of these militias were accused of rights breaches against civilians in Sunni areas. The Iraqi government and PMF acknowledged these breaches as “individual acts”.

The US has blacklisted several PMF leaders, including its chairman Falih Al Fayyadh, in a bid to increase pressure on Iran's proxies in Iraq, sanctioning senior figures between 2019 and 2021 under the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act. Mr Al Fayyadh is an ally of Mr Al Sudani and is set to run in parliamentary elections in November with him.

After declaring ISIS defeated in late 2017, the PMF and mainly Tehran-aligned groups morphed into a major political and military power, growing more defiant towards the government and opposition groups. Since then, they have launched attacks against US troops in Iraq as well as in Syria, where they fought alongside former president Bashar Al Assad's forces in its civil war.

The latest clashes came amid a push by Shiite political parties inside parliament to approve new amendments to the existing PMF law that would elevate their role as security forces. The new amendments were among the main issues discussed by the US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Mr Al Sudani in a phone call last week.

Mr Rubio “reiterated serious US concerns” with the PMF, emphasising that “any such legislation would institutionalise Iranian influence and armed terrorist groups undermining Iraq’s sovereignty,” spokeswoman Tammy Bruce said in a statement.

The US embassy on Monday called on the Iraqi government to “take measures to bring these perpetrators and their leaders to justice without delay,” in a statement on X. “Accountability is essential to upholding the rule of law and preventing further acts of violence,” it added.

While officially part of Iraq’s security apparatus under the control of the commander-in-chief, many of its factions maintain parallel chains of command and are widely believed to answer to Tehran. A photograph of the dead taxi driver was widely circulated on social media. Bullets ripped through his car when he passed by.

“His image is a grim symbol of a country held hostage by unaccountable militias,” the shop owner said. “He was trying to earn a living,” he added. “He didn’t belong to any party or faction, and yet he paid for this power struggle. That picture is Iraq. We are all trapped in this chaos.”