The Iraqi press has recently been full of stories about Iraqis joining the Russian army to fight in Ukraine. The reporting has led the government to threaten action to stop its people from going to the war.
Agence France Presse (AFP) ran one of the earliest reports in November 2025. It noted that there were many young Iraqis who’d joined the Iraqi Security Forces or Hashd during the war versus the Islamic State or gone to fight for Assad in Syria and were now looking for work. Iraq is also a very young country and the youth have the highest unemployment rate. They are being recruited with promises of high salaries and a signing bonus of up to $20,000. These offers are being posted on social media sites like TikTok and Telegram. AFP talked to four families who’d had relatives go to Ukraine. Three were missing and the fourth was killed. The Russian invasion has been such a disaster that it is calling in all kinds of foreign fighters to help it. Iraqis join a plethora of other foreigners who have been tempted by the promise of good money to fight in Ukraine.
In December more details were given about Iraqis in Ukraine. An advisor to Prime Minister Mohammed Sudani named Hussein Allawi told the media that there were 5000 Iraqis in the Russian army. Al Alam mentioned that they were suffering heavy casualties. It added that pro-Iran Hashd factions are also signing up Iraqis for Russia. This is because Russia and Iran have an alliance against the West and the two supported Assad in Syria until he was overthrown.
Finally, Baghdad is starting to take action against Iraqis to try to stop them from going overseas. A committee is being set up to try to bring Iraqis back from Ukraine. The government has contacted Moscow to try to stop them from accepting Iraqis. Finally there are the threats of legal penalties for going to fight abroad. Faiq Zidan for example the head of the Supreme Judicial Council warned that it is illegal to join another country’s armed forces without official permission. He said people could go to prison as a result. Finally, a man was given a life sentence on human trafficking charges for recruiting Iraqis for Russia.
The problem for Iraq is that it has such a bad economy for young people. It has one of the youngest populations in the region but few job opportunities. Even if people get a college education there is no guarantee of employment. The majority want to get work with the government because of its high wages and security. The ruling parties add thousands of jobs each year to dish out as patronage but that is not enough. There are protests every year of college graduates demanding more positions in the civil service. The private sector in contrast is small. Faced with this situation going to Ukraine for a lot of money compared to what is available at home is very enticing. It’s also not clear yet if the authorities are serious about cracking down upon Iraqis going to Ukraine or not. All together that means more people will likely join the Russian army at least in the short term.
SOURCES
Agence France Presse, “Iraq's social media mercenaries dying for Russia,” 11/5/25
Al Alam, “From Iraq to the Trenches of Ukraine: How “Palina” Lures Volunteers into the Russian Army,” 12/17/25
Bas News, “Iraq Monitors Thousands of Citizens Enlisted in Russian Army,” 12/25/25
Rudaw, “Iraqi committee to bring back hundreds of nationals fighting in Ukraine: Official,” 12/24/25
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