the Iraqi government, headed by Ali al-Zaidi, is showing seriousness in implementing its project aimed at “monopolizing weapons in the hands of the state,” within a deadline ending at the end of next September, and demonstrating this by arresting armed groups belonging to the factions, as well as seizing drones, sources spoke of Iranian negotiations with political forces and faction leaders in Baghdad, with the aim of settling the files of the future of the “resistance’s weapons” and the Strait of Hormuz.
the Speaker of the Iranian Parliament, Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, was scheduled to arrive in Baghdad on Monday to participate in the meeting of the Shiite “Coordination Framework,” but the visit was postponed to a later date.
According to photos and video footage of the “Framework” meeting held at the headquarters of former Prime Minister and leader of the “Reconstruction and Development” coalition, Mohammed Shia al-Sudani, the presence of the high-ranking Iranian official was not recorded. Rather, an empty seat appeared among the seats at the round meeting table occupied by the leaders of the “Framework,” without disclosing the identity of its absent occupant.
There are reports that the commander of the Quds Force in the Iranian Revolutionary Guard, General Ismail Qaani, has arrived in the Iraqi capital, Baghdad, at the head of a high-level military and security delegation.
However, local news sites quoted sources within the “framework” confirming the arrival of the Iranian parliament speaker in Baghdad on an official visit to hold a series of meetings with “framework” leaders and Iraqi officials.
According to the same sources, the talks focused primarily on the “repercussions of closing the Strait of Hormuz,” and the federal government, through the leaders of the “Coordination Framework,” asked Qalibaf to intervene to open the strait to Iraqi oil tankers to resume export operations and address the worsening financial crisis.
According to the same sources, the agenda of the meetings also included discussions on a number of security, economic and political issues shared between Baghdad and Tehran, in light of the current circumstances in the region.
On the other hand, there is talk of the arrival of the commander of the Quds Force in the Iranian Revolutionary Guard, General Ismail Qaani, in the Iraqi capital, Baghdad, at the head of a high-level military and security delegation.
The information widely circulated in Iraq did not specify whether Qalibaf, Qaani, and their respective delegations were visiting Iraq together or separately.
Iraqi sources reported that “Qaani held a series of meetings during the visit with some Iraqi officials from the leadership of the coordination framework, along with leaders of armed factions, including the leader of the Badr Organization, Hadi al-Amiri.”
The Iranian military official’s “unannounced” visit focuses on “two main issues: the weapons of the factions, and the possibility of allowing Iraq to effectively export its oil through the Strait of Hormuz,” according to sources.
The Shiite armed factions are linking the fate of their weapons to the end of the foreign military presence on Iraqi soil, as well as the achievement of national sovereignty “on land, in the air and at sea,” as their leaders have emphasized on several occasions.
The government has set the end of next September as the deadline for ending the issue of “factional weapons,” coinciding with the withdrawal of the “international coalition” forces led by Washington, which opposes the “Islamic State” organization, and the disappearance of the justification for that weapon.
The government has shown seriousness in implementing a project called “monopolizing weapons in the hands of the state,” in which factions such as “Asa’ib Ahl al-Haq” led by Qais al-Khazali, and the “Imam Ali” Brigades, under the leadership of Shibl al-Zaidi, and before them “Saraya al-Salam,” the military arm of the Sadr Movement, have already become involved.
Security forces confiscated hundreds of drones and arrested more than one group last week.
The US-based Al-Hurra website quoted an Iraqi security commander as saying that “security forces confiscated hundreds of drones and arrested more than one group during the past week,” stressing that “the operations took place in Babylon, Baghdad and other southern provinces, and that monitoring operations are continuing for the headquarters of the factions, especially those that refuse to hand over their weapons.”
He explained that “the move comes in implementation of high directives from the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, Prime Minister Ali al-Zubaidi, not to be lenient with any faction,” noting that “the Popular Mobilization Forces are cooperating with the security services in reporting the headquarters of factions that refuse to comply with the state’s decision.”
In the most prominent episode of this movement, a joint force from the Counter-Terrorism Service and the Intelligence Service arrested, last Friday, a cell consisting of three people belonging to armed factions in Babil Governorate, south of Baghdad.
The raid resulted in the seizure of modern drones that the group was preparing to use in attacks outside Iraq, and that the cell was “in direct contact with Iranian figures responsible for developing and carrying out drone attacks,” according to the same website.
This aligns with statements made by government spokesperson Haider al-Aboudi, who said the arrested cell “consists of three individuals belonging to armed factions. They were found in possession of advanced drones that were being prepared for attacks outside Iraq, and they are linked to Iranian figures responsible for carrying out drone attacks.” He indicated that “the operation was the result of a joint security and intelligence effort that contributed to thwarting the attack during the planning stage before it could be executed.”
On the same day, the government announced raising the level of security readiness and combat preparedness throughout the country, and issued directives to intensify the inspection of civilian and military vehicles at checkpoints, coinciding with the end of the deadline given to the “factions” to respond to the American-Saudi bombing that targeted the headquarters of the “Popular Mobilization Forces” at the end of last July, which left more than 50 victims, both dead and wounded.
The military official stated that the issue of uncontrolled weapons has begun to recede, and that the threat is no longer as significant as it was months ago.
Lieutenant General Mohammed Al-Askari, from the Iraqi Ministry of Defense, expected that “the judiciary will be strict in applying the law to those who possess weapons outside the state,” based on the position of the head of the Supreme Judicial Council, Faiq Zaidan, who considers “any action outside the control of the state to be a terrorist act.”
The military official said that “the issue of uncontrolled weapons has begun to recede, and the threat is no longer as significant as it was months ago, after the regional and local variables changed,” adding that “the project no longer finds supporters who dare to advocate for it publicly because it contradicts the constitution and the government’s project.”
He argued that “justifications for postponing the delivery – such as brandishing the September deadline or talking about foreign bases in the north – belong in diplomacy, not weapons.”
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