Iraq’s push to bring Iran-backed militias under state control could face new obstacles, as some powerful hardline factions say they will not disarm until all US troops leave the country, The National has learnt.
The stand-off exposes the limits of Baghdad’s leverage and risks jeopardising Prime Minister Ali Al Zaidi’s plan to assert a monopoly on arms. The US has tied defence and economic co-operation to curbing Iran-linked factions and has warned it opposes the participation of any militia in Iraqi government.
This week, the powerful Asaib Ahl Al Haq and the less influential Imam Ali Brigades announced they would begin procedures to place their weapons under state authority and dissociate from the Popular Mobilisation Forces.
That followed the same move by influential Shiite cleric Moqtada Al Sadr, who ordered his armed Saraya Al Salam faction to split from his political movement and Popular Mobilisation Forces, and integrate into the country's state-run forces.
The move was welcomed by Mr Al Zaidi, describing it a “responsible stance” that would strengthen state institutions and the rule of law. US envoy Tom Barrack also praised the initiative, saying it would contribute to “the architecture of order” in Iraq.
However, several armed factions, mainly Kataib Hezbollah and Harakat Hezbollah Al Nujaba, have taken a different stance and linked disarmament to the presence of US and other foreign troops in Iraq.
The two groups, considered the spearhead of Iran's proxies, have attacked US assets in Iraq and the wider region. They also fought in Syria's civil war alongside Bashar Al Assad’s army and launched attacks on Israel after the Hamas-led October 7 attack.
“The decisions of these factions are influenced by two main factors,” said a legislator linked to the Co-ordination Framework, the largest Shiite political bloc for pro-Iran political parties and armed factions in Iraq's parliament.
“First, the ideological and religious dimension, tied to [Iran’s] Khamenei’s religious authority, which considers this weaponry to be under its ownership.
“Second, Iran’s interest in keeping these groups as a strike force at its disposal, especially at this time,” he added. For that reason, he said, the decision “doesn’t lie here in Baghdad but in Tehran and their presence will be linked to ongoing negotiations between Iranians and US”.
Occupying power
A source close to the umbrella group of pro-Tehran militias, the Islamic Resistance in Iraq, said Washington “is exerting blatant pressure on Iraqis to force them into surrendering the resistance’s weapons, while continuing to maintain its troops and intelligence presence inside Iraq”.
Accusing Washington of undermining Iraqi sovereignty, the source said: “The Americans are openly violating Iraq’s sovereignty” with their demands. “This is the behaviour of an occupying power.”
He said disarmament must follow the restoration of full sovereignty. “We have said: 'achieve genuine sovereignty first, then all other issues can be addressed,” he added.
Along with US troops, there are Iranian opposition groups and Turkish forces that Ankara has deployed to fight the separatist group Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK).
“So why are the resistance factions, which are the country’s own forces, being asked to surrender their weapons?” the source said. “Deal with these occupations first. The restriction of arms must be comprehensive, not selective.”
The rejections by these groups have widened a split within the Iran-backed camp, with each faction blaming the other. The divide reflects a long-running condition set by the hardliners: no disarmament while foreign forces remain.
The rejectors have set a condition for disarmament, which is expected by the end of September, by which time all US troops must have left the country, ending the mission of the anti-ISIS International Coalition, another Co-ordination Framework legislator said.
Iraq and the US in 2024 agreed on a phased withdrawal: coalition forces to exit federal Iraq by September 2025 and the northern Kurdistan region by September 2026.
“They see them as an occupying force,” he said. “They have promised that there will be a clear programme to end any arms outside of state institutions by then,” a move that could be “problematic and prompt the US to take action against them”.
Trust
An Iraqi official, who chose not to be named, said the disarmament of the militias is one of the main conditions of the US. Washington has said it will not work alongside any political parties with ties to these armed militias.
“Asab Ahal Al Haq got 29 seats in the elections – their main aim is to get one or two ministries, and they cannot do this and become part of the government while they are armed,” the official said. “They put on this show so they can get some ministries and power.”
However, the official said he has questions on whether the militia will hand over all of its weapons to the state. “I don’t believe they will hand over 100 per cent of their arms, [even] between the armed militias, no one trusts each other,” he said.
“There's going to be some hidden,” he added. Because Mr Al Sadr has no ambitions to participate in the government after boycotting the political process, the disarmament of his group is “more genuine” than that of AAH, the official said.
Political momentum
For now, the government is moving ahead with those willing to comply, as they have formed committees to log personnel, weapons and equipment, and co-ordinate directly with the Commander-in-Chief.
On Thursday, Saraya Al Salam, which is not pro-Iran, took down its flag in a ceremony at its headquarters in Samarra, north of Baghdad, to mark the beginning of the process in front of senior military officials.
A plan is being drawn within the Co-ordination Framework to end this issue within three months, the legislator said. Thousands of jobs will be available in security forces for members of these groups after criminal records are checked, the second CF legislator said.
The main challenge, Mr Al Zaidi told the Co-ordination Framework, will be funds, as Iraq has been struggling with exporting crude due to the closure of Strait of Hormuz, while contending with a bloated public sector. Domestic bank loans will be an option, he added without elaborating.
The outcome will test whether the Co-ordination Framework and the Prime Minister can “translate political momentum into actual control over arms, or whether the militia question will remain hostage to the timeline for US withdrawal or a deal between Tehran and Washington,” he said.
