Insiders: Armed factions reined in, US attacks halted
Shafaq News/ Iraq’s Shiite Coordination Framework has reached a preliminary agreement to integrate armed factions into the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) and ensure their full adherence to military command, political sources said Tuesday.
The agreement, which follows extensive discussions between key Framework leaders and faction commanders, also includes a commitment to halt attacks on US interests in Iraq and suspend operations beyond the country’s borders, the sources told Shafaq News.
Under the arrangement, all PMF brigades and units, including the formerly independent factions, will operate under the direct command of Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani as commander-in-chief of the armed forces. “No entity will be permitted to act outside official military directives,” the sources said.
The decision is expected to take effect following a post-Eid al-Fitr meeting between the Coordination Framework and the State Administration Coalition. Authorities are also set to conduct security inspections of sites claiming affiliation with the PMF but lacking official recognition.
The agreement signals a shift in Iraq’s handling of armed groups, particularly those with ties to the so-called “Islamic Resistance in Iraq,” a network aligned with Iran-backed factions across the region. The deal stipulates that any actions taken outside state authority—including unilateral attacks against US interests or operations under the pretext of supporting regional resistance movements—will be met with legal consequences, the sources said.
The move aligns with Iran’s position, which has reportedly backed the effort to consolidate control over Iraq’s security landscape. Tehran has emphasized that Iraq should remain "neutral" in regional conflicts, despite recent escalations involving Iran-backed groups.
Iraq officially maintains two military forces—the national army and the PMF. However, within the PMF, some factions operate under the “Islamic Resistance in Iraq,” part of a broader Iran-aligned regional axis that includes Lebanon’s Hezbollah, Yemen’s Houthis, and other groups opposing the United States and Israel.
Following the October 7 attacks on Israel, these factions launched drone and missile strikes on US bases in Iraq and Syria, as well as drone attacks on Israel. Their operations largely ceased after several months, but recent developments—including renewed Israeli airstrikes on Gaza and US attacks on Houthis in Yemen—have reignited tensions.
In response, the Islamic Resistance in Iraq declared itself ready for renewed confrontation, either through direct military action or targeted operations, while Iraq’s parliamentary Security and Defense Committee has stressed that any Iraqi involvement in regional conflicts should be based on Arab or international consensus rather than unilateral action.
Meanwhile, senior Iranian military official Esmail Qaani, commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ Quds Force, made an unannounced visit to Baghdad last week, a high-ranking source told Shafaq News.
During the visit, Qaani met with Coordination Framework leaders and PMF commanders, urging them to maintain security discipline, avoid unilateral actions, and refrain from escalating tensions in Syria. He also delivered Iranian messages to the Iraqi government, supporting Baghdad’s position of neutrality.
However, the source added that Tehran warned that any Israeli attack on Iraq could trigger an Iranian response, with potential backing for any retaliatory actions taken by Iraq’s armed factions.
