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Iraq
Iran-backed paramilitary group rejects weapons handover claims
2026-09-17
[Rudaw] Iraq's Iran-aligned gang Kata’ib Sayyed
...Arabic term meaning your/his lordship. Groveling in His Exalted Presence is encouraged...
 al-Shuhada on Wednesday denied a claim by an Iraqi politician that it had handed over weapons to the government, saying he had no authority to speak on its behalf.

Against the backdrop of the Iraqi government’s looming September 30 deadline for the US-led Global Coalition against the Islamic State
...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that they were al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're really very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling Allah around with every other sentence, but to hear western pols talk they're not really Moslems....
 (ISIS) to complete its drawdown which coincides with a disarmament campaign to confine all non-state arms to state control, Ali Anheri, member of the Parliamentary Defense and Security Committee, on Tuesday claimed that the faction had begun the process of handing over weapons and stated that only Kata'ib Hezbollah and Harakat Hezbollah al-Nujaba had yet to comply.

Speaking to Iraqi TV channel al-Rasheed TV, Anheri said the group's head, Abu Ala al-Wala'i, was among those who had handed over heavy weapons to the Popular Mobilization Commission, and that the handed-over items, including drones, had been catalogued and recorded.

Kata'ib Sayyid al-Shuhada rejected Anheri's account in a statement issued in the early hours of Wednesday, branding them as "false claims."

"We reaffirm to the public that what was stated in those remarks is completely untrue," the group stated, adding that "the aforementioned member of parliament does not represent any official spokesperson for the brigade and has no authority to issue positions or statements on its behalf."

Only members of the group are entitled to speak on its behalf, it reiterated.

According to Anheri, there is a wide consensus that the Iraqi government should hold an exclusive monopoly on weapons capable of crossing borders, including drones, missiles and heavy anti-air weaponry - except among the factions themselves.

"They have some conditions. There could be some flexibility on some of these conditions," Anheri said on Tuesday, naming the US-opposed PMF Law, which seeks to institutionalize armed factions - some of whom are US-designated terrorist groups - as a core demand.

The Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) was established in 2014 by decree of Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, Iraq's highest Shia religious authority, as an umbrella of roughly 70 mostly Shia gangs with around 250,000 members formed to fight the ISIS insurgency.

Despite being state-funded, the PMF includes factions aligned with Iran's "Axis of Resistance®" - Asa'ib Ahl al-Haq, Kata'ib Hezbollah, Harakat Hezbollah al-Nujaba and Kata'ib Sayyid al-Shuhada - with the latter three having yet to heed the disarmament call and who have progressively raised their demands which include the dissolution of Kurdish Peshmerga forces, removal of Kurdish groups with cross-border ties to Iran
...a theocratic Shiite state divided among the Medes, the Persians, and the (Arab) Elamites. Formerly a fairly civilized nation ruled by a Shah, it became a victim of Islamic revolution in 1979. The nation is today noted for spontaneously taking over other countries' embassies, maintaining whorehouses run by clergymen, involvement in international drug trafficking, and financing sock puppet militias to extend the regime's influence. The word Iran is a cognate form of Aryan. The abbreviation IRGC is the same idea as Stürmabteilung (or SA). The term Supreme Guide is a the modern version form of either Duce or Führer or maybe both. They hate Jews Zionists Jews. Their economy is based on the production of oil and vitriol...
and The Sick Man of Europe Turkey
...the occupiers of Greek Asia Minor...
, and a full US troop withdrawal from Iraq as a pretext for noncompliance.

In his inaugural address to parliament in mid-May, Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi pledged security reforms including "confining weapons under state control," and in June ordered a committee formed to oversee the separation of political parties and armed factions from the PMF of which Asa’ib Ahl al-Haq was among the first to agree to Zaidi's push, severing ties with their fighters within the PMF.

A committee of senior Coordination Framework figures, including former Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, is negotiating the process with the factions.

With the deadline a mere two weeks away, rhetoric among Iraqi politicians has shifted from talk of disarmament toward "organizing" or "restricting" weapons, particularly those capable of striking neighboring countries - a focus sharpened by an attack on Saudi Arabia
...a kingdom taking up the bulk of the Arabian peninsula, largely made up of sand and oil rigs. Its primary economic activity involves exporting oil and soaking Islamic rubes on the annual haj pilgrimage. The country supports a large number of princes in whatcha might call princely splendor. Formerly dictatorial and steeped in Olde Tyme Religion, deferring to Salafist holy men on all issues, it has now done a 180 and is making a serious effort to modernize, so as not to be left in the sand by its Gulf Arab neighbors. The holy men have been shoved to the background and the nation is now still dictatorial but somewhat rational. That doesn't make them trustworthy, but it's a start...
's East-West pipeline that an Iraqi government investigation found was launched from Maysan province, heavily damaging its pumping stations.

Iraqi government spokesperson Haider al-Aboudi, speaking to Iraqi channel al-Sharqiya in Gay Paree on Tuesday, reiterated the government's position that it must hold a monopoly on the use of force.

"The reasons that allowed arms to remain outside state control during the events of 2014 no longer exist today... after September 30, Iraq and the Iraqi state will have a monopoly over the tools of force, and this constitutes a return to normal constitutional stipulations," he said.

No other party would be permitted a security role on the government's behalf, he said, warning that groups who fail to comply "will have to face the law."
Related:
Kata''ib Hezbollah: 2026-08-20 Iraq’s Services Alliance rejects Kata'ib Hezbollah disarmament demands
Kata''ib Hezbollah: 2026-08-19 Good Morning
Kata''ib Hezbollah: 2026-08-13 Baghdad is moving to encircle the positions of factions run by the 'Revolutionary Guard' without clashes
Related:
Harakat Hezbollah al-Nujaba: 2026-08-13 Baghdad is moving to encircle the positions of factions run by the 'Revolutionary Guard' without clashes
Harakat Hezbollah al-Nujaba: 2026-07-17 Dana Gas suspends operations after drone strikes on Erbil, while Atrush and Sarsang oilfields restart production
Harakat Hezbollah al-Nujaba: 2026-07-16 Several blasts heard in Erbil, drone crashes at Iraq’s southern port amid reports of renewed drone activity
Link


Iraq
Iran’s Revolutionary Guard set up Iraqi cells to attack Gulf neighbors, sources say
2026-06-20
[IsraelTimes] Cells’ covert establishment, posing a challenge to new Iraqi PM’s balancing act between DC and Tehran, may have been spurred by other local pro-Iran factions’ readiness to disarm

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has set up secretive new cells in Iraq to carry out attacks on Gulf countries that host American forces, bypassing established militia networks to avoid detection, eight Iraqi sources told Rooters.

Three or four cells, each comprising about 10 elite Iraqi Shi’ite Moslem fighters, launched at least seven drone attacks from desert locations near the southern cities of Basra and Samawa against sites in Kuwait, Saudi Arabia
...a kingdom taking up the bulk of the Arabian peninsula, largely made up of sand and oil rigs. Its primary economic activity involves exporting oil and soaking Islamic rubes on the annual haj pilgrimage. The country supports a large number of princes in whatcha might call princely splendor. Formerly dictatorial and steeped in Olde Tyme Religion, deferring to Salafist holy men on all issues, it has now done a 180 and is making a serious effort to modernize, so as not to be left in the sand by its Gulf Arab neighbors. The holy men have been shoved to the background and the nation is now still dictatorial but somewhat rational. That doesn't make them trustworthy, but it's a start...
 and the United Arab Emirates between April 20 and May 17, three of the sources said.

A number of their members were drawn from the Islamic Resistance® in Iraq, an umbrella group of hardline Shi’ite factions with thousands of fighters. But the new groups operate outside its command structure, reporting directly to the IRGC, according to the sources, who include two Iraqi military officials, another security official and five local militia commanders.

The establishment of the new Iraqi cells, which has not previously been reported, reflects a shift in IRGC tactics aimed at preserving Iran’s ability to project force across the region at a time when its armed proxy groups are greatly diminished, in part following years of fighting with Israel, and its own military and economic resources are depleted following the US-Israeli war with Iran, the five militia commanders said. The IRGC is a US-designated terrorist organization.

Iraq, a Shi’ite-majority country, has a host of militias, many of which maintain close ties to Tehran. They form a key pillar of Iran’s regional "Axis of Resistance®," which stretches from Gazoo
...Hellhole adjunct to Israel and Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, inhabited by Gazooks. The place was acquired in the wake of the 1967 War and then presented to Paleostinian control in 2006 by Ariel Sharon, who had entered his dotage. It is currently ruled with a rusty iron fist by Hamas with about the living conditions you'd expect. It periodically attacks the Hated Zionist Entity whenever Iran needs a ruckus created or the hard boyz get bored, getting thumped by the IDF in return. The ruling turbans then wave the bloody shirt and holler loudly about oppression and disproportionate response...
 and Leb
...an Iranian satrapy until recently ruled by Hassan Nasrallah situated on the eastern Mediterranean, conveniently adjacent to Israel...
 to Yemen
...an area of the Arabian Peninsula sometimes mistaken for a country. It is populated by more antagonistic tribes and factions than you can keep track of...
 and Iraq.

Groups acting under the banner of Islamic Resistance® in Iraq have grabbed credit for dozens of drone and rocket attacks against American assets in the country, drawing deadly retaliatory Arclight airstrike
...KABOOM!...
s, since the US and Israel began the war with Iran
...a theocratic Shiite state divided among the Medes, the Persians, and the (Arab) Elamites. Formerly a fairly civilized nation ruled by a Shah, it became a victim of Islamic revolution in 1979. The nation is today noted for spontaneously taking over other countries' embassies, maintaining whorehouses run by clergymen, involvement in international drug trafficking, and financing sock puppet militias to extend the regime's influence. The word Iran is a cognate form of Aryan. The abbreviation IRGC is the same idea as Stürmabteilung (or SA). The term Supreme Guide is a the modern version form of either Duce or Führer or maybe both. They hate Jews Zionists Jews. Their economy is based on the production of oil and vitriol...
on February 28. But there has been no mass mobilization of Iran’s proxies inside Iraq’s borders.

Several powerful Shi’ite factions there have been signaling since last year that they are ready to disarm and focus on domestic politics to avert an escalating conflict with the administration of US President Donald Trump
...The man who was so stupid he beat fourteen professional politicians, a former tech CEO, and a brain surgeon for the Republican nomination in 2016, then beat The Smartest Woman in the World in the general election. Then he beat Kamala while dodging bullets...
. That development may have spurred the IRGC to set up groups under its direct control, according to Jasim al-Bahadli, a retired Iraqi army general, and two politicians from the Shi’ite governing alliance.

Two of these factions, Asaib Ahl al-Haq and the Imam Ali Brigades, announced this month that they would begin surrendering their weapons to state authorities following repeated US warnings to Iraq’s government to disband gangs operating on its soil.

"The newer groups established by the IRGC appear smaller, more ideologically hardened and more tightly controlled, reflecting Iran’s need to conserve resources amid economic strain," said Bahadli, who is an expert on Shi’ite gangs.

US-IRAN DEAL DOES NOT ADDRESS TEHRAN’S SUPPORT FOR PROXIES
The US and Iranian presidents signed an interim agreement this week to end the war, with negotiations to follow on difficult issues like the future of Tehran’s nuclear program. But Iranian officials have said Tehran’s support for "resistance groups" — including terror groups that have waged war against Israel, and that, like Iran, overtly seek Israel’s demise — is not up for discussion, and the agreement does not address the issue.

Iran’s foreign ministry and its missions to the United Nations
...boodling on the grand scale...
 in New York and Geneva did not immediately respond to detailed questions for this article.

The US State Department reiterated "expectations that the Iraqi government takes immediate measures to dismantle all the tools of Iran’s destabilizing activities in Iraq, to include the IRGC and Iran-aligned terrorist militias in Iraq."

At a meeting on Monday, Iraq’s new prime minister, Ali al-Zaidi, and US envoy Tom Barrack, who is also the ambassador to The Sick Man of Europe Turkey
...the occupiers of Greek Asia Minor...
, discussed Iraqi plans to ensure "the complete disarmament and disbandment of all gangs" operating outside Iraqi state control and to ensure "Iraqi territory cannot be used by any side to threaten regional peace," according to a joint statement.

Zaidi’s military front man, Sabah al-Numan, declined to comment for this article.

Kuwait’s information ministry, the Saudi government communications office and the UAE foreign ministry did not respond to requests for comment.

The war in Iran has battered the world’s most important energy-producing region, disrupting supplies and sending inflation surging.

Tehran responded to the US-Israeli bombing campaign with missile and dronezaps across the region and by effectively closing the Strait of Hormuz, which normally carries about a fifth of the world’s shipments of oil and liquefied natural gas. The US responded by blockading Iran, though both blockades were to be lifted after the signing of the MOU.

New groups that emerged in Iraq during the conflict, often operating under unfamiliar names and with minimal public profiles, carried out at least three drone attacks targeting Kuwait, two targeting Saudi Arabia and two aimed at the UAE, the three Iraqi security sources said, citing a combination of human intelligence, intercepted communications and evidence gathered from launch sites.

Targets included Kuwait’s Ali Al Salem Air Base, where US forces are deployed, and a military terminal at the country’s international airport, the sources said without elaborating. The attacks aimed at Saudi Arabia and the UAE were intercepted, according to the sources, who could not confirm the intended targets.

Rooters could not independently verify their accounts.

AN EARLY TEST FOR IRAQ’S NEW PRIME MINISTER
Iraqi officials said the IRGC turned to the new cells to maintain plausible deniability, deflect blame from the country’s main Iran-backed groups and reduce US pressure on Baghdad to disarm them.

The Iraqi security forces have limited information about the groups but are working to uncover their chains of command to help prevent future attacks, the officials said. The groups include elite fighters with expertise in drone operations and communications, they added.

Tehran spent decades and billions of dollars building up its network of regional alliances, which has been severely weakened since Hamas
..a contraction of the Arabic words for "frothing at the mouth",...
 invaded southern Israel on October 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and kidnapping 251, while committing widespread atrocities and mass sexual assault, sparking a multifront war.

Israel has hammered Hamas in Gaza and the Lebanese terror group Hezbollah, which began attacking Israel following the October 7 attack. The Iran's Houthi sock puppets
...a Zaidi Shia insurgent group operating in Yemen. They have also been referred to as the Believing Youth. Hussein Badreddin al-Houthi is said to be the spiritual leader of the group and most of the military leaders are his relatives. The legitimate Yemeni government has accused the them of having ties to the Iranian government. Honest they did. The group has managed to gain control over all of Saada Governorate and parts of Amran, Al Jawf and Hajjah Governorates. Its slogan is God is Great, Death to America™, Death to Israel, a curse on the Jews They like shooting off... ummm... missiles that they would have us believe they make at home in their basements. On the plus side, they did murder Ali Abdullah Saleh, which was the only way the country was ever going to be rid of him...
 terror group in Yemen, also backed by Iran, likewise fired missiles and drones at Israel, and has been targeted by US, Israeli and British airstrikes. Syrian President Bashir Pencilneck al-Assad
Despoiler of Deraa...
, an ally of Iran, was toppled in December 2024, cutting off an important supply route for Iraqi militias and further isolating the Islamic Theocratic RepublicRather than maintain a broad network of well-funded groups in Iraq, Iran now appears to be relying on a limited number of "more radicalized cadres willing to operate with leaner financial support, prioritizing loyalty, deniability and operational impact over mass recruitment," said Bahadli, the militia expert.

The new groups pose an early test for Iraq’s Zaidi, who took office last month following US pressure on the dominant alliance of Shi’ite political blocs to prevent the return of former Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, who has close ties to Iran. Baghdad has long walked a tightrope between its two closest allies, Washington and Tehran, a balancing act that became more difficult during the war.

Attacks emanating from Iraq also risk unraveling Baghdad’s painstaking efforts to rebuild ties with wealthy Gulf neighbors, which have been strained since Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait in 1990 but had started to thaw in recent years.

Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and the UAE summoned Iraq’s envoys in April to protest the strikes.

Iraqi authorities are investigating whether the strikes include a May 17 drone attack that caused a fire at the Barakah ​Nuclear Power Plant, security officials said. Saudi Arabia said it intercepted three drones that entered its airspace from Iraq the same day, an attack the Iraqi officials said was carried out by a new group.

Zaidi condemned the two attacks, describing them as criminal acts, and promised a joint inquiry with both Gulf countries to verify whether Iraqi territory was used to target them. Numan, Zaidi’s front man, did not answer questions about the status of the investigation.
Link


Syria-Lebanon-Iran
'Dawn of the Tribes': 50,000 Armed Men Could Reshape Syria
2025-07-24
Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited.
by Kirill Semenov

[REGNUM] The bloody events in the Syrian province of Suwayda, which began on July 13 as a conflict between Druze and Bedouin tribes, have led to the largest population displacement since the fall of the Bashar al-Assad regime.

According to the UN, 93,000 residents of the province were forced to leave their homes. However, while the Druze have already begun to return after the ceasefire was declared, the Bedouins and representatives of the Arab-Sunni clans of Suwayda have become refugees who are being placed in temporary camps in the neighboring province of Daraa, which creates the preconditions for the continuation of the conflict in the very near future.

It is clear that the Syrian tribes are extremely unhappy with this outcome, although recently it seemed that they were one step away from entering the city of As-Suwayda, the provincial capital, and dealing with the Druze leader Hikmat al-Hijri.

He is considered not only an Israeli stooge and the organizer of armed resistance to the new Syrian authorities, but also responsible for numerous acts of violence and reprisals against the Bedouins of Suwayda.
Reprisals makes it sound like the Bedouins started it…
But after another intervention by government troops and the Interior Ministry, which this time blocked the arrival of reinforcements from Syrian tribes in Suwayda, the Bedouins were forced to agree to the truce reached between the government and the Druze leaders and began withdrawing their forces.

However, this also led to the exodus of the Sunni Arab population of Suwayda, who feared reprisals and revenge from the Druze fighters. That is, the Bedouins may feel that not only was their victory stolen from them, but they were also forced to leave their homes, and now they are waiting for the moment for revenge.

If the situation is not resolved in the near future and an agreement is not reached between the government and the Druze that takes into account the interests of all parties, then Suwayda will likely face a new invasion of Syrian tribes. The government will not be able to stop it, and perhaps will not want to.

At the first stage of the confrontation, when battles between Arab tribes and the Druze began, the army and the Ministry of Internal Affairs were brought into the province, and instead of separating the opposing sides, they began to support the Bedouins in their attacks on the Druze.

This led to numerous casualties, including among the civilian population. Thus, according to human rights activists, the army and tribal militias participated in reprisals against the civilian population. About 200 Druze were killed then, a tenth of them were women and children.

Then the strikes of the Israeli Air Force, the patron of the Syrian Druze, were able to stop the advance of the Syrian troops and the Interior Ministry and forced them to retreat from the province. But soon Tel Aviv itself was forced to appeal through intermediaries to official Damascus so that it would again intervene in the conflict and stop the advance of the Bedouin tribes.

THE AWAKENING OF THE TRIBES STOPPED ISRAEL
After the army left, the tribal militias refused to leave Suwayda, where, according to their representatives, violence against their fellow tribesmen took place. Instead, they called for a mobilization that affected not only the clans in this province, but also throughout Syria. This demonstrated that the Syrian tribes are an important independent factor that should not be underestimated.

On July 17, the Syrian Tribal Council announced Operation Tribal Dawn, which marked a major Bedouin offensive against Suwayda. The Druze were unable to stop it without Israeli support.

The point is that the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) could no longer strike on behalf of the Druze. This would have provoked a more serious regional escalation and the spread of the conflict to neighboring countries, such as Jordan.

After all, the IDF would have to bomb not the “terrorists” and “jihadists,” as the Syrian army is called in Israel, but the Bedouins, with whom their fellow tribesmen from neighboring countries expressed solidarity, promising their assistance in the event of external intervention.

After all, the IDF itself is made up not only of Druze, but also of Bedouins from the Negev desert. The latter could also be displeased that, in appearing as the protector of the Druze, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ignored their interests.

In turn, the Jordanian Tribal Council “clearly and unequivocally” warned that “any direct military intervention by the Zionist entity in Syrian territory, especially in the south, will be met with immediate action by the Jordanian tribes in defense of the dignity of the nation, loyalty to the Arab and Islamic covenant, and rejection of any encroachment on Arab geographic sovereignty and decision-making process.”

Unlike Syria, Netanyahu would not want to destabilize friendly Jordan, whose population is made up of Palestinians and Bedouins. Jordanian Palestinians already largely support Hamas. If Bedouins joined them, it would weaken the ruling Hashemite dynasty.

Thus, the mass movement of Syrian Bedouins in support of the Arab-Sunni clans of Suwayda could get out of control and turn into a serious cross-border threat. However, the risks of such a scenario have not yet been contained, and the chances that a new wave of Bedouin rebellion will engulf not only Suwayda, but also neighboring countries, still remain.

FROM LAWRENCE OF ARABIA TO AS-SAHWA
One can recall the times of Lawrence of Arabia and the awakening of the Arab tribes, which showed that they were a formidable force when united by common interests. Without their support, the British would have found it difficult to break through the Turkish armies in Palestine in 1917-1918.

But even in the more recent past, there are examples of how the Bedouins were on the verge of changing the region.

As Grigory Lukyanov, a research fellow at the Center for Arab and Islamic Studies at the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences, told Regnum news agency, “even before ISIS appeared, the Americans hired tribes from the Syrian-Iraqi border to fight Al-Qaeda (AQ) terrorists, and then the Islamic State of Iraq (ISI)”.

These tribes were quite successful, they managed to eradicate AK and ISI in the terrorists’ stronghold – Anbar province, and the Bedouins of Iraq gained a reputation as hunters of Al-Qaeda. They were the only ones who managed to suppress the activity of its militants and drive them deep into desert refuges.

According to Lukyanov, this led to an increase in power and financial demands from tribal groups, who hoped to consolidate their role and place in governing Iraq and gain access to its resources.

But the American exodus in 2011 and the end of funding for the tribal militias transformed them from a leading counterterrorism force into a base for the same jihadist groups they had so successfully fought so recently.

Of course, the sectarian anti-Sunni policy of the radical Shiite party "Dawa" headed by Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, which came to power in Iraq, also played a role here. He saw "As-Sahwa" as a threat to his power and rejected previous agreements on turning the tribal militia into a national guard, trying to disarm them.

As Grigory Lukyanov noted, this led to the fact that the authorities of the Sunni tribes of Iraq and their sheikhs were unable to do anything to stop the mass exodus of ordinary members to radical anti-government groups.

Thus, at first, the Sunni tribes of Iraq played a decisive role in the defeat of terrorist groups and allowed the Americans to begin withdrawing troops from Iraq under the pretext of completing their mission to suppress terrorist activity, which was carried out at the hands of the tribes.

But then those same tribes, or rather the youth that emerged from them, turned their weapons against the government and supported the terrorists they had only recently fought, becoming the social base of the ISIS, and then of ISIS.

This allowed the terrorist organization to restore its strength and, two years later, to attack government troops with renewed vigor, who, now deprived of the support of the tribes, could not withstand the onslaught and began to surrender city after city.

AMERICAN "INVESTMENTS"
As for Syria, according to Lukyanov, similar phenomena are currently being observed there: tribes are looking for their new place and new role.

As the expert notes, the absence of a fully functional state, parties, trade unions, and the loss of horizontal connections that existed in the Baath Party led to the launch of processes of forming new forms of socialization, activity, and consolidation that tribal structures can offer.

However, as Lukyanov notes, the consolidation of the Syrian tribes is currently based on a response to threats from their opponents, the Druze. Therefore, it is too early to talk about the long-term nature of such tribal associations. Consequently, according to the orientalist, the potential of the tribes is "situational and limited."

Indeed, despite having a very significant number of “bayonets and sabres,” the Syrian tribes were never able to come up with a common position during the civil war. They created various alliances with the opposition, the Assad regime, and the Kurds, and, depending on the situation, switched from an alliance with one to an alliance with their opponents.

At the same time, the clans often changed places: one supported Assad today, and the opposition tomorrow, and another supported the opposition today, and the government tomorrow.

For example, some clans of the Shaitat tribe, which initially supported the anti-Assad Free Syrian Army, later switched to the government's side, creating the "Lions of the Eastern Province" group led by Abdul Basset Alkhalaf.

Others chose the “third way” and ended up in the ranks of the pro-Kurdish Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), where, for example, two tribal armies operated: Jaysh al-Sanadid from the largest tribe, Shhammar, and Quwat al-Nuqba.

At the same time, the Assad regime tried to use the tribes to undermine the unity of the Syrian Democratic Forces and turned the tribes against the Kurds, in which Iran helped it.

They partially succeeded in this in the fall of 2023.

Then a tribal uprising broke out, which was able to expel the Kurdish SDF formations from many areas of the Euphrates region after the Kurds arrested one of the tribal leaders who headed the SDF-affiliated military council of Deir ez-Zor.

And only American “investments” were able to stop the spread of the conflict, which threatened the very existence of Kurdish autonomy in the Syrian northeast, and force the tribes to return to the ranks of the SDF.

Therefore, despite the situational and temporary nature of alliances, the ability of the Syrian tribes to create a militia of 50 thousand armed men could threaten the existence of not only the Druze formation in Suwayda, but also the Syrian Democratic Forces, with which Damascus has been unsuccessfully trying to negotiate.

In fact, the SDF alliance, consisting of Kurds and Arab tribes, between whom there has long been undisguised hostility, is held together only by American infusions. But Washington has recently been reconsidering its attitude to maintaining the SDF's autonomy, which its Kurdish leadership continues to insist on, and is pushing it toward integration into the Syrian army.

And the tribal instrument remains a factor of influence in the hands of Washington, among others, as could be seen during the period of the activity of the As-Sahwa movement in Iraq.

If the Druze and Kurds continue to be intractable, it is precisely the money from the Americans, who have suddenly shown interest in Syrian unity, that could become the trigger that will force the tribes to turn their weapons against the Kurds and Druze and “drive” them under the aegis of official Damascus.

CROSS-BORDER THREAT
Even temporary outbreaks of tribal activity in Syria pose a serious threat to neighboring countries.

For example, in Iraq there are still quite a lot of contradictions between Sunnis and Shiites, and, having realized the ability to solve problems on a regional scale, Syrian tribes can come to the aid of their Iraqi brothers.

And brothers in the most literal sense, since many families and clans are divided by the Syrian-Iraqi border and live on both sides of it. The same applies to Jordan.

Therefore, the Syrian tribes are a "samurai sword" that, on the one hand, can be used against enemies, but on the other hand, there is always a risk of inflicting mortal wounds on oneself.

And the flirtation of the weak Damascus regime, which is incapable of establishing order in its own army, with tribal militias in the more distant future may turn against it, just as the Iraqi Sahwa once turned against the Iraqi government.
Related:
Suwayda: 2025-07-22 Syria starts evacuating Bedouin families from Sweida in bid to restore calm after more than 1260 killed
Suwayda: 2025-07-22 Claim: Syrian regime forces wearing Islamic State badges carry out bloody rampage
Suwayda: 2025-07-21 Relief convoys carrying food, water, medicine, and essential supplies are set to start arriving in Suwayda; 1100+ dead
Link


Syria-Lebanon-Iran
Pause to Disguise: West Prepares for Main Task in Iran
2025-06-25
Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited.
by Kirill Semenov

[REGNUM] The temporary pause in mutual attacks between Israel, the US and Iran so far leaves more questions than it answers.

Given that neither side has achieved its objectives,
…Iran has not erased Israel, but Israel has severely damaged Iran’s nuclear program, killed or wounded many of its civilian and military leaders, and made a severe dent in Iran’s war matériel, hindering both their ability to wage war and rule the country. Also, there’s that little thing about Israel wiping out most of the leadership, funding, and war matériel of Hamas and Hezbollah, and the ports used by the Houthis, severely reducing the ability of Iran’s catspaws to attack Israel at home, though they are thus far mostly untouched in Europe and the Americas…
a new escalation can be expected soon. Although it is also likely that Iran's opponents will move to a new stage and focus their efforts on subversion within the country in order to bring about a change of power and the dismantling of the Islamic Republic.

NEW METHODS OF OVERTHROW
In the event of a long-term truce, Washington and Tel Aviv are counting on the Yugoslav scenario being launched in Iran. Then, strikes on the country caused significant damage and, although not immediately, paved the way for a “color revolution” and a change of power.

Trump has most likely generally accepted Israel's view on the need to dismantle the political system of the Islamic Republic. At the same time, the range of possible actions to achieve this goal is very wide, including the assassination of Iran's supreme leader, which could trigger revolutionary events.

Therefore, what is happening is a serious challenge for Russia as well. Iran is being used to develop elements of future subversive activities against both us and China, Donald Trump's main adversary.

First of all, the creation and launch of not only effective terrorist and sabotage networks, but also cells engaged in subversive activities through the dissemination of narratives favorable to the United States and Israel and organizing protests in Iranian society is being tested.

Perhaps the previous principles and methods of "color revolutions" that worked against weak political regimes, such as those in Ukraine, Georgia, Kyrgyzstan, etc., have already been revised. They have proven ineffective against countries such as Russia or Iran.

It is also worth recalling that the subversive actions of the US and Israel in Iran occurred immediately after Operation Spider Web, when strategic aviation bases were attacked by sabotage terrorist groups using drones from Russian territory. And earlier, there were explosions of transport infrastructure, murders of Russian generals and public figures.

Both operations—the actions of cells in both Iran and Russia—followed similar algorithms, so they most likely had a single foreign coordination and decision-making center.

If we consider the geopolitical consequences, then, by continuing their subversive activities against the Islamic Republic, the United States and Israel also intend to destroy the “One Belt, One Road” and “North-South” transport corridor systems that are being built.

Therefore, the actions of the American-Israeli bloc are a common threat, and it would be good if it led to strengthening cooperation in the Moscow-Tehran-Beijing triangle with the possible involvement of Pakistan to the extent that it does not cost the break in the strategic partnership with India.

A LIBERAL SHOWCASE WITH RADICAL CONTENT
Naturally, if the enemies of the Islamic Republic aim to change power in the country, then they must prepare a leader who will personify a new Iran “without mullahs, hijabs and Sharia.”

The most acceptable candidate was chosen to be the shahzade, that is, the prince, the son of the last shah, Muhammad Pahlavi, who, like his grandfather, the founder of the dynasty, bears the name Reza.

As early as February 2025, Pahlavi was chosen by various fringe factions of the Iranian opposition as their leader and head of a future transitional government “until the formation of the first national assembly and the beginning of democratic rule through free elections.”

In reality, however, his supporters do not wield any real influence within the country. Reza, like his father, Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, was never a popular leader.

Reza Pahlavi, the grandfather, the first shah of the dynasty, essentially usurped power after a military coup and declared himself the new monarch in 1925, rather than establish a republic in Iran. In this sense, both shahs resemble the father and son of the Assad family in Syria, who led the country to collapse and revolution.

Therefore, the legitimacy of the Pahlavis themselves is very conditional - they came to power through a coup and, by historical standards, soon lost power through a revolution. It is not possible to compare them with the Romanovs in Russia or other dynasties - overthrown, but having deep foundations for legitimacy.

At the same time, there are more serious opposition forces in Iran, which, unlike the freak monarchists, have their own networks of influence and can really lay claim to power in the event of a hypothetical collapse.

This includes, for example, the Organization of the Mujahideen of the Iranian People (OMIN), a revolutionary leftist-Islamist organization that waged armed struggle against the Islamic Republic for a long time while in Saddam Hussein's camp. The ideology of this organization is a mixture of Marxist, Leninist and Islamist positions.

The MEK participated in the Islamic Revolution in Iran, but then lost the struggle for power to the "Khomeinists" and its supporters were subjected to repression. The mujahideen responded to this with a wave of terror and mass murder of supporters of the new authorities.

The MEK had its own National Army of Liberation of Iran (NAL), based in Iraq and numbering 7,000 fighters. In 1988, six days after Ayatollah Khomeini announced his acceptance of a UN-brokered ceasefire, the NLA advanced under heavy Iraqi air cover, crossed the border, and captured the city of Islamabad-e-Gharb. But it was then driven back with heavy losses.

In 2003, the MEK and NAO, still based in Iraq, fought on Saddam's side against the US and its allies who had attacked Iraq, but a ceasefire was then agreed upon.

However, since 2009, the new Iraqi government, close to the Islamic Republic, has demanded that MEK leave Iraq. Then, pro-Iranian Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki announced that the group would be banned from basing itself on Iraqi territory. He backed up his statements with repression and arrests of its members.

After that, the US began to remove the organization's fighters from Iraq. At the same time, OMIN was removed from the terrorist lists, and the US was able to convince Albania to accept the remaining 2,700 NAO members who were brought to Tirana between 2014 and 2016. It is obvious that the CIA, by showing such patronage over OMIN, expected to use its resources in the future.

A 2008 report by the U.S. Army Intelligence Center said the MEK operates a large network of supporters in Iran, sparking debate among intelligence experts about whether Western powers should use the opportunity to better build their own intelligence picture of the Iranian regime’s goals and intentions.

Iran has also carried out operations to expose MEK networks, for example, in 2010 and 2011, Ali Saremi, Mohammad Ali Hajj Aghaei and Jafar Kazemi were executed for collaborating with the organization .

Donald Trump, even during his first presidency, wanted to use MEK against the Islamic Republic. In January 2018, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani called French President Emmanuel Macron and asked him to order the expulsion of MEK from its French base in Auvers-sur-Oise, claiming that the organization had provoked the Iranian protests of 2017–2018.

The main base of the OMIN, however, remained Albania, where more than 4,000 of its members were located. There, during the Free Iran 2019 conference, former New York City Mayor and Trump’s personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani described the group as a “government in exile,” saying it was a ready-made alternative to lead the country if the Iranian government fell.

Moreover, the Trump administration then stated that it did not rule out the MEK as a viable replacement for the current Iranian regime.

In turn, OMIN networks in Albania were subjected to cyber attacks in 2022, which the Albanian authorities blamed on Iran, leading to a rupture in diplomatic relations between the countries.

Thus, if the Shah is a kind of “face” of the pro-Western opposition, then in reality the change of power in the Islamic Republic will be carried out by networks of radical organizations such as OMIN.

Of course, it now positions itself as a respectable structure that shares Western values, but in reality this group has hardly moved far from its previous principles.

Therefore, even if we assume that the West will succeed in dismantling the current state system in Iran, this does not mean that they will succeed in bringing to power their own supporters, who are not an organized force.

GUARDIANS OF THE REVOLUTION
At the same time, there are serious obstacles to such plans for a change of power in Iran. Thus, despite the split in Iranian society, its pro-government part has united around the supreme leader.

It is a foundation that can withstand any pressure, even from the majority of Iranians themselves, who are unable to crack it until it cracks itself. However, its foundation still appears monolithic, despite attempts to drive wedges through military actions by the US and Israel.

At the core of this foundation is the very ideology of the Islamic Republic, the guardians and cement of which are the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).

Unlike the CPSU and the Komsomol of the late USSR, the IRGC is not just a party of supporters of the Islamic regime or special services, which are also there. The IRGC is a multi-million army, an armed force of supporters of the Islamic Republic and the ideas of the Islamic revolution, whose tentacles are present in all spheres of society, holding it back from disintegration.

And the opposition, even one as organized as OMIN, has nothing to counter this “monster” with.

It is pointless to look for complete analogues of the IRGC: this is a purely Iranian specificity. The formation of the Corps took place without looking back at any Western examples. And what it has now become - with its own industry, aviation, navy and special services - was clearly not envisaged at the time of its creation.

The IRGC emerged primarily as a military structure, a kind of guard during the war with Iraq. At that time, assault battalions were created from the most zealous Muslim supporters of the Islamic Revolution, which were then united into the divisions of "Prophet Mohammad", "Imam Hussein", "Ashura" and "Najaf", which became some of the most combat-ready during the Iran-Iraq war.

Initially these were formations designed to fight Iraq on the battlefield, but were recruited from motivated volunteers who later found wider use.

Thus, the IRGC rather reflects the Middle Eastern, Islamic specificity, and the most similar to it is probably the National Guard of Saudi Arabia. It arose from the religious militia of zealous Wahhabis, the "Ikhwan" (not to be confused with other "Ikhwan", the "Muslim Brotherhood").

The Saudi Ikhwan might have also secured for themselves powers as broad as those of the IRGC in Iran, if not for their conflict with the king, the unsuccessful uprising in 1929, and the transformation of those of them who remained loyal to the monarch despite their own understanding of religion into the National Guard. Instead of guardians of religion, they became guardians of the oil fields and borders of the House of Saud.

That is, both the Saudi Ikhwan and the IRGC are, first and foremost, defenders, guardians of religion and a state based on religious principles. And they must protect religion from enemies, both external and internal.

This is the main difference between the IRGC and the Iranian army. If the army must protect the state as a territory, then the IRGC stands guard over the Islamic revolution, its goals and ideals. Therefore, they are called upon to act both inside the country and far beyond Iran. That is why the range of tasks of the IRGC is much wider.

For example, for the "export of the Islamic revolution" there is the Al-Quds command - an organization with its own structure. It is intended for foreign operations, support of allied movements and countries.

That is, if we imagine the IRGC as a matryoshka doll, as a state within a state, then Al-Quds is also a state, a matryoshka doll, but already within the “IRGC state”. With its own separate intelligence structures, special forces, ground forces. And it seems that it will be difficult to find a suitable analogue for this.

The IRGC has its own intelligence and counterintelligence, but so does the Quds Force command. At the same time, the Islamic Republic itself as a state also has its own intelligence and counterintelligence, not connected to the IRGC.

But functions similar to those of, for example, our Federal Security Service are concentrated in the IRGC. The Ansar al-Mahdi unit operates to protect senior officials and religious centers, and the Supreme Leader himself is protected by the Wali-e Amr unit.

The IRGC also has rapid reaction forces and special operations forces that duplicate the army special forces, including the Saberin Takavor Brigade, the 110th Salman Farsi Special Operations Brigade, the 33rd Al-Mahdi Airborne Brigade and separate battalions in provincial corps. While in the Army, the Special Forces are represented by the 55th and 65th Brigades.

The IRGC's ground forces are organized into 32 infantry territorial corps, which were deployed from regular divisions from the Iran-Iraq War, combined with regular battalions and militias from the Basij command.

Unlike the army divisions, the IRGC divisions are mostly infantry. Although they do have tank units, they are significantly fewer than the army. There are probably 8 IRGC "operational" divisions deployed at all times in peacetime, but in wartime there may be more than 40.

The core of the land component in the provinces is the "Hussein Battalions", which are part of the Basij and serve as the basis for the reserve infantry divisions in wartime that will be deployed from the militias. These battalions can also be used as expeditionary forces. They have, for example, participated in the fighting in Syria.

Therefore, the Basij is not only the militia and reserve of the IRGC, but also the regular units. This includes the first-priority reserve and the so-called “army of 20 million” - a broader, mass militia that can be called up to suppress internal threats.

If the Hussein Battalions are the backbone of the IRGC ground forces, the equivalent of a territorial army in the provinces, then the Ali Battalions of the Basij Command are the equivalent of a gendarmerie aimed at suppressing unrest and counter-revolutionary rebellions. They work closely with the police and security forces.

The IRGC has created a multi-layered presence in Iranian society and has engaged in its activities in one form or another millions of people who are ready to stand up for the Islamic revolution at the first order. At least, this is what is expected of them.

This is the foundation, the basis on which the Iranian regime relies. And even if its supporters are in the minority, their unity and organization will most likely allow them to withstand the challenges and threats of internal destabilization.

Link


Iraq
Day 2: Death toll rises to 15 amid Clashes after Iraqi Shia cleric Muqtada al-Sadr resigned
2022-08-30
Day 1 can be seen here and here.

[ENGLISH.ALARABIYA.NET] Iraqi Shia holy man Moqtada Tater al-Sadr
...hereditary Iraqi holy man and leader of a political movement in Iraq. He had his hereditary rival al-Khoei assassinated shortly after the holy rival's appearance out of exile in 2003. Formerly an Iranian catspaw, lately he's gagged over some of their more outlandish antics, then went back to catspawry...
 announced Monday that he would resign from Iraqi politics, prompting hundreds of his angry followers to storm the government palace and sparking festivities with security forces and between rival militias. At least 15 protesters were killed.

Protesters loyal to al-Sadr pulled down the cement barriers outside the government palace with ropes and breached the palace gates. Many rushed into the lavish salons and marbled halls of the palace, a key meeting place for Iraqi heads of state and foreign dignitaries.

Iraq’s military announced a nationwide curfew, and the caretaker premier suspended Cabinet sessions in response to the violence. Medical officials said dozens of protesters were maimed by gunfire and tear gas and physical altercations with riot police.

As night fell, a militia loyal to al-Sadr clashed with the Popular Mobilization Forces security inside the heavily fortified Green Zone, the seat of Iraq’s government, wounding at least one woman, according to two security officials. Several mortar rounds were heard, the officials said.

The crackle of machine gun fire persisted and echoed throughout central Baghdad.

The PMF is an umbrella group composed of state-sanctioned paramilitary groups, the most powerful of which are aligned with al-Sadr’s rivals in the Iran-backed political camp.

Security officials said mortars and rocket-propelled grenades were used in the festivities, a culmination of intractable political impasse between the rival camps.

Iraq’s government has been deadlocked since al-Sadr’s party won the largest share of seats in October parliamentary elections but not enough to secure a majority government. His refusal to negotiate with his Iran-backed Shia rivals and subsequent exit from the talks has catapulted the country into political uncertainty and volatility amid intensifying intra-Shia wrangling.

Iraq’s majority Moslem population is split into two sects, Shias and Sunnis. Under Saddam Hussein, the Shias were oppressed until the US-led invasion reversed the political order. Now the Shias are fighting among themselves, with the dispute centering around power and state resources but also influence over the Shia street.

To further his political interests, al-Sadr has wrapped his rhetoric with a nationalist and reform agenda that resonates powerfully among his broad grassroots base of supporters who hail from Iraq’s poorest sectors of society and have historically been shut out from the political system.

Many were first followers of his father, a revered figure in Shia Islam. They are calling for the dissolution of parliament and early elections without the participation of Iran-backed Shia groups, which they see as responsible for the status quo.

During Monday’s festivities, Saraya Salam, a militia aligned with al-Sadr gathered in the capital’s Tahrir Square to "protect" protesters, one of its commanders said.

An News Agency that Dare Not be Named photographer heard gunshots being fired in the capital and saw several protesters bleeding and being carried away. It was not immediately clear who fired the gunshots.

A senior medical official confirmed at least 10 protesters were killed by gunfire. The number was also confirmed by the Sadrist media office, which provided a list of 10 names.

Iraq’s caretaker premier said he would open an investigation into the shootings and said the use of live ammunition against protesters was forbidden.

Protests also broke out in the Shia-majority southern provinces, with al-Sadr’s supporters burning tires and blocking roads in the oil-rich province of Basra and hundreds demonstrating outside the governorate building in Missan.

Iran
...a theocratic Shiite state divided among the Medes, the Persians, and the (Arab) Elamites. Formerly a fairly civilized nation ruled by a Shah, it became a victim of Islamic revolution in 1979. The nation is today noted for spontaneously taking over other countries' embassies, maintaining whorehouses run by clergymen, involvement in international drug trafficking, and financing sock puppet militias to extend the regime's influence. The word Iran is a cognate form of Aryan. The abbreviation IRGC is the same idea as Stürmabteilung (or SA). The term Supreme Guide is a the modern version form of either Duce or Führer or maybe both. They hate Jews Zionists Jews. Their economy is based on the production of oil and vitriol...
considers intra-Shia disharmony as a threat against its influence in Iraq and has repeatedly attempted to broker dialogue with al-Sadr.

In July, al-Sadr’s supporters broke into the parliament to deter his rivals in the Coordination Framework, an alliance of mostly Iran-aligned Shia parties, from forming a government. Hundreds have been staging a sit-in outside the building for over four weeks. His bloc has also resigned from parliament. The Framework is led by al-Sadr’s chief nemesis, former Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki.

This is not the first time al-Sadr, who has called for early elections and the dissolution of parliament, has announced his retirement from politics — and many dismissed Monday’s move as another bluff to gain greater leverage against his rivals amid a worsening stalemate. The holy man has used the tactic on previous occasions when political developments did not go his way.

But many are concerned that it’s a risky gambit and are worried how it will impact Iraq’s fragile political climate. By stepping out of the political process, al-Sadr is giving his followers, most disenfranchised from the political system, the green light to act as they see fit.

Al-Sadr also commands a militia and maintains a great degree of influence within Iraq’s state institutions through the appointments of key civil servant positions. His Iran-backed rivals also have militia groups.

Iraq’s military swiftly announced a nationwide curfew beginning at 7 p.m. It called on the holy man’s supporters to withdraw immediately from the heavily fortified government zone and to practice self-restraint "to prevent festivities or the spilling of Iraqi blood," according to a statement.

"The security forces affirm their responsibility to protect government institutions, international missions, public and private properties," the statement said.

Iraq’s caretaker Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi also demanded that al-Sadr call on his followers to withdraw from government institutions.

The UN mission in Iraq said Monday’s protests were an "extremely dangerous escalation," and called on demonstrators to vacate all government buildings to allow the caretaker government to continue running the state.

It urged all to remain peaceful and "refrain from acts that could lead to an unstoppable chain of events."

"The very survival of the state is at stake," the statement said.

Al-Sadr announced his withdrawal from politics in a tweet, and ordered the closure of his party offices. Religious and cultural institutions will remain open, it said.

The true motivations behind al-Sadr’s announcement appeared to be a reaction to the retirement of Shia spiritual leader Ayatollah Kadhim al-Haeri, who counts many of al-Sadr’s supporters as followers.

In a surprise announcement Sunday, al-Haeri said he would be stepping down as a religious authority for health reasons and called on his followers to throw their allegiance behind Iran’s Ayatollah Ali Khamenei
...the very aged actual dictator of Iran, successor to Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini...
, rather than the Shia spiritual center in Iraq’s holy city of Najaf.

The move was a blow to al-Sadr, who despite harboring ambitions to be a religious authority lacks the scholarly credentials to be an ayatollah. al-Haeri, who resides in the Iranian holy city of Qom, once provided him with the legitimacy he lacked by designating al-Sadr as his representative in Iraq. He cut ties shortly after with the holy man, but continued to enjoy the support of his followers.

By calling on his followers to side with Khamenei, al-Haeri brought on a crisis of legitimacy for al-Sadr.

In his tweet, al-Sadr said al-Haeri’s stepping down "was not out of his own volition."
DShK=14.5mm antiaircraft machine gun, mounted on a "technical."

HQ's of most of the pro-Iran groups are burning all over Shia Iraq. Basra has had street battles too.

Related: U.S. spokesman denies the Green Zone embassy was evacuated.
"Who ya gonna believe? Your own lying eyes? Or the transparent honesty of the Biden Regime?"
Link


Iraq
Iraqi president rejects prime minister nominee, threatens to resign
2019-12-27
[Rudaw] Iraqi President Barham Salih submitted his resignation letter to parliament in the face of pressure from the Bina coalition to name Basra’s current governor as the next Prime Minister of Iraq.

The pro-Iran Bina coalition claims to be the largest bloc in Iraqi parliament. According to the Iraqi constitution, the largest bloc in parliament has the constitutional prerogative to select Iraq’s new prime minister.

The coalition, headed by Hadi al-Ameri and former Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, nominated Basra governor Asaad al-Aidani. They sent a letter to President Salih requesting that he assign al-Aidani to lead Iraq’s new cabinet.
Link


Iraq
Iraq-Saudi border crossing to reopen after nearly 30 years
2019-09-13
[Rudaw] An Iraq-Soddy Arabia
...a kingdom taking up the bulk of the Arabian peninsula. Its primary economic activity involves exporting oil and soaking Islamic rubes on the annual hajj pilgrimage. The country supports a large number of princes in whatcha might call princely splendor. When the oil runs out the rest of the world is going to kick sand in the Soddy national face...
 border crossing is set to reopen after nearly three decades of closure, Iraq’s border crossing department announced on Thursday.

A meeting held between Iraqi and Saudi border authorities at the Arar crossing set October 15 as a test period for its reopening, a department statement said.

Anbar provincial council member Amira Odaie spoke to Rudaw on Thursday about the meeting.

"Early on Thursday morning, Iraq’s border crossing department met with their Saudi Arabian counterparts to discuss the opening of Arar crossing border, in order to boost trades and tourism between the two countries," Odaie said.

Opening the Arar crossing will also provide job opportunities to Anbar province’s young people currently suffering from high rates of unemployment, she added.

Arar crossing closed back in 1991, when relations between the two countries deteriorated after then-president Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait. Iraq-Saudi relations were further damaged under former Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki’s tenure.

Rapprochement between the two began in 2015, when Saudi Arabia reopened their Baghdad embassy after 25 years of closure.

A Saudi-Iraqi Coordination Council was established in October 2017 with the aim of strengthening relations between the two countries.

Vying for influence in the country over regional rival Iran, Saudi Arabia opened a consulate in Baghdad in April 2019 after a visit from a 100-person Saudi delegation, including nine ministers. Riyadh pledged $1.5 billion in loans to Iraq during the trip.

Iraqi Prime Minister Adil Abdul-Mahdi visited Saudi Arabia later that month, when the two countries signed 13 deals in the fields of political consultation, investment promotion and protection, agriculture, energy, electricity, and higher education.

The Arar border crossing currently opens once a year, to allow Iraqi pilgrims to enter Saudi Arabia to perform the Islamic rite of Hajj.
Link


International-UN-NGOs
Muslim countries urged to play role on Al-Quds issue
2019-06-01
[DAWN] Federal Minister for Human Rights Dr Shireen Mazari on Thursday urged Moslem countries to play their role in developing a consensus on the issue of al-Quds.

Addressing an al-Quds conference held to express solidarity with Paleostine at a local hotel, she said Moslem countries, particularly Pakistain, Indonesia, Malaysia and The Sick Man of Europe Turkey
...Qatar's colony in Asia Minor....
, should play their role to revive the issue of al-Quds and highlight the lost agenda at the international platform.

She said the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) had lost its relevance as it could not take up the issue of al-Quds.

Iran hardliners to lead show of force for Palestinians on Quds Day

[Rudaw] Moslems across the world will take to the street on Friday in simultaneous rallies to protest against the Israel occupation of Paleostinian lands, the biggest of which to be held in the Iranian capital where hardliners will burn the Israeli and US flags, while chanting "Death to America and Israel!"

Several top holy manal authorities in Iran on Thursday called on people to take part in Islamic Revolution founder Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini's rally who began it 40 years ago to show worldwide Moslem solidarity with Paleostinians on the last Friday of fasting during Ramadan.

Khomeini introduced the concept a few months after the 1979 Revolution in response to Israeli cross border attacks against Paleostinian militia groups in Leb.

"For many years, I have warned about Israel the usurper, which has intensified its attacks on Paleostinian brothers and sisters these days and in particular in Leb intending to destroy the Paleostinian fighters, constantly bombing their homes," Khomeini said in his terse message naming the occasion on August 7, 1979.

Former Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki emphasized the importance of Quds (Jerusalem) Day) in a tweet.

"Commemorating International Quds Day is surely heeding the wise call that Imam Khomeini, may God have mercy on, him made. It shows the extent of the commitment of Arab and Islam peoples to the Paleostinian cause," he said on Friday.

Protesters in ’Quds Day’ parades often carry signs supporting Hezbollah and other holy warriors groups across the Middle East. However the UK parliament on March 1 added Hezbollah to a list of terrorist organizations and supporting the group carries a sentence of up to 10 years in prison.

Protestors in the southern Iraqi city of Basra demonstrated against the United States and President Donald Trump
...New York real estate developer, described by Dems as illiterate, racist, misogynistic, and what ever other unpleasant descriptions they can think of, elected by the rest of us as 45th President of the United States...
, Israel, and Saudi King Salman
...either the largest species of Pacific salmon or the current Sheikh of the Burnin' Sands, Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques and Lord of Most of the Arabians....
 on Friday.

For a several years there have been attempts to ban the parade in London.

"I've raised my deep concerns about the support shown for Hezbollah at the annual Al Quds march in London on a number of occasions - and the fact the Home Secretary has finally listened and is taking action is welcome," Sadiq Khan the Mayor of London responded to a question on March 21. "However,
we can't all be heroes. Somebody has to sit on the curb and applaud when they go by...
 neither myself nor the Met have the power to ban marches or protest; that power lies with the Home Secretary."

The day is officially called International Quds Day.

Iranian Minister of Culture Abbas Salehi said this week that the day's goal is to defend Paleostinians' democratic rights.

"It’s more than 40 years from Camp David to the Deal of the Century. US peace further fueled war and violence in the region from Carter to Trump," he wrote on Twitter.

Rhetoric and emotion will run high following midday prayers across the Islamic world, with many protesting US President Donald Trump's decision to move its embassy to Jerusalem and the re-election of Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu.
Link


Iraq
Iraqis set Iran consulate in southern city ablaze, decry Tehran’s interference, curfew set in Basra
2018-09-08
[IsraelTimes] Iraqis set Iran consulate in southern city ablaze, decry Tehran’s interference

Demonstrators against corruption in restive Basra accuse Iranian-backed political parties of interfering with Iraqi politics

Angry protesters stormed the Iranian consulate in the southern city of Basra Friday, setting a fire inside as part of ongoing demonstrations that have turned deadly in the past few days, a security official and eyewitnesses said.

At least 10 protesters have died in festivities with security forces since Monday, including three who were rubbed out by security forces on Thursday night as protesters lobbed Molotov cocktails and set fire to a government building and offices of Shiite militias in the city.

Residents of Basra and other cities in Iraq’s oil-rich southern Shiite heartland have been protesting since July over endemic corruption, soaring joblessness and poor public services. Clashes erupted earlier this week, leaving several civilians and police dead. Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi has ordered an investigation into the violence which shows no sign of abating.

The violence prompted the temporary head of Iraq’s parliament, the eldest politician, to call an emergency meeting on Saturday to discuss the snowballing protests.

The protesters shouted anti-Iranian slogans outside the Iranian consulate Friday evening, including "Iran, out, out!" before they stormed it and set a fire inside. Smoke could be seen rising from the building. Protesters also burned an Iranian flag. Many residents of the predominantly Shiite city accuse Iranian-backed political parties of interfering with Iraqi politics and some hold them responsible for mismanagement and the poor services in the city.

In Baghdad, security forces launched a search operation to determine the source of three mortar shells that landed inside Baghdad’s heavily fortified Green Zone. There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the mortar shells that landed just after midnight Friday in an abandoned lot in the Green Zone, and no casualties were reported.

The rare attack comes amid a political crisis and against the backdrop of the Basra protests, adding to overall tensions in the country.

The newly-elected parliament earlier this week held its first session since the national elections in May. The session was adjourned amid disagreements as two blocs, both claiming to hold the most seats, vied for the right to form a new government.

The new parliament faces the twin tasks of rebuilding the north of the country following the war against the Islamic State
...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling Allah around with every other sentence, but to hear the pols talk they're not really Moslems....
 group and rehabilitating services in the south, where severe water and electricity shortages have fueled protests.

A coalition led by al-Abadi and populist holy man Moqtada Tater al-Sadr
... the Iranian catspaw holy man who was 22 years old in 2003 and was nearing 40 in 2010. He spends most of his time in Iran, safely out of the line of fire, where he's learning to be an ayatollah...
 has the support of the US and Soddy Arabia
...a kingdom taking up the bulk of the Arabian peninsula. Its primary economic activity involves exporting oil and soaking Islamic rubes on the annual hajj pilgrimage. The country supports a large number of princes in whatcha might call princely splendor. When the oil runs out the rest of the world is going to kick sand in the Soddy national face...
, while an alliance between former Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and militia leader Hadi al-Amiri has the backing of Iran.

Both alliances are dominated by Shiites, who have held the preponderance of power in Iraq since Saddam Hussein’s ouster in 2003. But the largest Sunni blocs are aligned with al-Abadi and al-Sadr. Iraq’s two main Kurdish parties have not taken a side.

A representative of the Shiite community’s spiritual leader, the Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, condemned during the Friday prayers sermon the violence against peaceful protesters and called for the quick formation of a new government that can deal with the challenges facing the country.

Curfew Imposed in Iraq's Basra as One Dies in Protests

[AnNahar] A curfew was imposed in the southern Iraqi city of Basra after a fresh outbreak of violent protests over poor public services left one person dead and 35 injured.

Thousands of demonstrators converged in central Basra Thursday after local officials decided to scrap an earlier curfew imposed by central authorities in Baghdad, with the atmosphere appearing calmer than in previous days.

"One person was killed and 35 were maimed; 24 civilians and 11 coppers," said health ministry front man Seif al-Badr, without giving any more details.

The statement came as authorities announced a new curfew in the city, where the local government headquarters and the offices of political organizations were in flames.

Fire was seen spreading around the massive government complex that has been the focus of anger, with witnesses saying it tore through offices housing state TV channel Iraqiya.

AFP journalists also reported that the nearby governor's residence was alight, while witnesses and sources said fires were raging at the local offices of several political organizations.

It was unclear if the blaze started as the result of a fresh attack with incendiary devices or was due to earlier fires that emergency services had failed to extinguish.
Link


Iraq
Iraq’s pro-Iranian militias threaten to break Iran’s blockade
2018-08-09
[ENGLISH.ALARABIYA.NET] Following the United States’ sanctions going into effect against the Islamic Theocratic Republic on Tuesday, Iraq’s pro-Iranian militias threatened to break Iran’s blockade at all cost.

In a statement, Kata’ib Sayyid al-Shuhada, an Iraqi Shiite militia, said that work is in progress to break the blockade.

The militia statement criticized Iraqi Prime Minister Haydar al-Abadi’s stance, describing it as disappointing and a failure compared to what Iran has given to Iraq, according to the statement.

The statement added that without Iran, al-Abadi would not have been in power, pointing out that the duty of the Iraqi government was to stand by Iran in order to break the US economic blockade.

In a presser on Tuesday evening, Iraqi Haydar al-Abadi said that Iraq is committed to the US sanctions against Iran, pointing to the Iraqi interests.

In the same context of the positions of other Iraqi pro-Iranian militias, Hassan Salem, the head of the parliamentary bloc Sadikun, representing the political front of the Shiite militia As’aib Ahl al-haq, said in a statement that it was time for the Iraqi government to return the favors to Iran, in reference to Iran’s financial and military support for its militias.

For his part, former Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki received on Wednesday, the Iranian ambassador to Iraq, Irj Muasjidi. During the meeting, they discussed the latest political and security developments in the region.

Maliki called on the Iraqi government not to be part of the US policy to impose economic sanctions on Iran.

For its part, Doa’at al-Islam Shiite militia said in a statement on Wednesday that the actions of imposing unilateral sanctions on Iran by the United States and its president Donald Trump
...New York real estate developer, described by Dems as illiterate, racist, misogynistic, and what ever other unpleasant descriptions they can think of, elected by the rest of us as 45th President of the United States...
 was a violation of all human values and international norms.

The statement called on the Moslem world to reject the sanctions and to work on expanding relations between these nations in order to confront the American political and economic arrogance, according to the statement.

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Iraq
More Than Militias: Iraq's Popular Mobilization Forces Are Here To Stay
2018-04-04
[WarOnTheRocks] Over the last several years, I have met with commanders and fighters from Iraq’s Popular Mobilization Forces (al-hashd al-sha’abi, or PMF), an umbrella organization of some 50 paramilitary groups, to hear about their perspectives on the situation in Iraq. Last month, I re-visited a leader whom I hadn’t seen in some time. As I walked into the room, I noticed that he no longer wore army fatigues ‐ instead, he was in a suit. He joked that things had changed, and he was now returning to politics.

He is not the only one. The PMF have become much more than a group of militias, now seeking to establish a legitimate institutional presence and play a role in politics and the economy, against the backdrop of a fragile Iraqi state that remains weak after the fall of ISIL.

A critical aspect of the state rebuilding process is reforming the security sector, which collapsed in 2014 when a few thousand fighters took over one-third of Iraq. During the 3-year fight against ISIL, a number of armed groups ‐ united in opposition to a common enemy but not in command structure or vision ‐ emerged in place of the struggling state armed forces. Although the Iraqi armed forces have since recovered, the state’s weakness has allowed many of these paramilitary groups continue to control territory in liberated areas from Mosul to Kirkuk.

The largest of these groups is the PMF, established in June 2014 by former Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki after the fall of Mosul. The PMF includes groups with competing ideologies and rivalling allegiances to Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, and Iraqi Shia cleric Muqtada al-Sadr. However, the most powerful groups and leaders in the PMF come from a network of conservative Shia Islamists who enjoy good relations with Khamenei and the regime in Tehran. PMF forces played a key role in the liberation of territory, first on the front lines in much of the initial fighting, and then holding areas as Iraqi forces recovered and began leading the liberation.

Today, in recently liberated areas, the PMF has recruited local fighters and serves as a de facto national guard. Its political influence is also growing. Organized into the Fatah Alliance electoral bloc, PMF leadership is focused on making gains in the upcoming 2018 elections.

The Iraqi government and its international allies have demanded that the PMF integrate into the central state apparatus. Most recently, Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi issued a decree to rein in the militias through an integration process. This has traditionally meant incorporating fighters into the command chain of the traditional state armed forces (al-quwwat al-musalaha), which legally fall under the Ministry of Defence or the Ministry of Interior.

But realities on the ground paint a different picture. Benefitting from the weakness of Iraqi state institutions, the PMF leadership has rejected Baghdad’s decrees, and instead offered its own vision for the future of the militias: to become an independent security body protecting the political system, like a praetorian guard for the state. Under this proposal, the paramilitary groups would fall under the Prime Minister’s Office, which separates it from the Ministry of Defence of Ministry of Interior.

Despite Abadi’s ongoing efforts at security-sector reform, so far the PMF leadership has won the debate. It will not integrate in the traditional way; rather, it will become an institutionalized autonomous force, fundamentally altering Iraq’s security architecture and challenging Baghdad’s command structure and monopoly over legitimate violence. Institutionalization, rather than integration, will define the PMF’s role as the Iraqi state rebuilds itself.
Long, click through for the whole thing.
Herb, please don’t use p and /p to separate paragraphs, but just put a blank line between them (except when doing in-lines, of course). For whatever reason, using p and /p results in two blank lines appearing between the paragraphs, and it’s time-consuming to clean up.

Thanking you for the moderators,
trailing wife
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Iraq
Maliki rejects joint electoral list with Abadi: Dawa Party
2018-01-09
[ARABNEWS] Former Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki will participate in the forthcoming parliamentary election, but refuses to do so as part of a joint electoral list with his successor Haider Abadi, big shots of the Islamic Dawa Party told Arab News.

Both Abadi and Maliki belong to the party. The current prime minister replaced his predecessor in September 2014 following widespread opposition to Maliki’s desire for a third term. Tensions between the two have persisted ever since.

So far, 205 political parties and 12 registered alliances will participate in the election, which is due to take place on May 12, the Independent High Electoral Commission told Arab News.

Ali Alaq, a Dawa leader, told Arab News that the party "wants to participate in the election in one electoral list."

This "will preserve the interests of the party and won’t disperse the (electoral) votes, but Maliki has another opinion," Alaq said.

But Maliki’s political adviser Abbas Mossowie told Arab News: "Participating in two electoral lists, one headed by Maliki and the other by Abadi, has been discussed during recent party meetings."

Mossowie added: "The final decision hasn’t been made yet, but the majority (of the party) supports having two lists. Maliki prefers to run the election in two lists."

The rebuilding of the security establishment, the retaking of territory lost to ISIS and the Kurds, and increased international and regional support for Abadi’s government, contributed to his nomination as head of Dawa’s electoral list, party leaders told Arab News.

"Abadi is more worthy than anyone else to head the list. Our field research suggests he has a great chance at re-election as head of the next government," a Dawa leader told Arab News on condition of anonymity.

"There’s almost an international, Arab and popular consensus on Abadi. He deserves to win another term to finish his work on the economy, fight corruption and rebuild liberated areas."

Maliki believes that Abadi, Dawa and his Shiite rivals betrayed him when they opposed him having a third term even though he gained the most votes in the 2014 election.
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