The Trump administration is keeping up the pressure upon the Iraqi elite to disband the Resistance and curtail Iranian influence. That’s been seen in new statements and sanctions.
On May 6 a State Department official told the media that prime minister designate Ali al-Zaidi has to deal with the pro-Iran Resistance. He said that the factions have to be expelled from the state and no longer be funded. Washington is looking for actual action this time and not just words.
The Trump White House was already pushing Baghdad on the Resistance and events during the Iran War only solidified this policy. U.S. facilities and personnel were targeted in Iraq more than 600 times during the conflict.
On April 24 State accused elements within the Iraqi government of supporting these attacks upon Americans. That’s a reference to the fact that the Resistance is not only an official member of the Iraqi Security Forces but that they also hold offices in the cabinet of Prime Minister Mohammed Sudani.
Washington has issued a new set of rewards and sanctions upon Resistance figures. First, a $10 million reward was issued for information about Abu Alaa al-Walae the secretary general of Kataib Sayid al-Shuhada. He was accused of attacks upon Americans in Iraq and Syria and killing Iraqi civilians.
As a sign of these groups’ power and U.S. concerns Walae was involved in a meeting of politicians to discuss picking a new prime minister. The Americans put in a formal complaint about this.
A few days later another $10 million offer was made for Akram Abbas al-Kabi the head of Harakat al-Nujaba. The next day Deputy Oil Miniser Ali Maarij al-Bahadili was sanctioned for mixing Iranian oil with Iraqi exports to avoid U.S. sanctions and supporting the Resistance along with a financier of Asaib Ahl Al-Haq and two officials from Kataib Sayid al-Shuhada.
This is all meant to let PM designate Zaidi know that he must take concrete steps against the Resistance or face more penalties. The U.S. has already stopped transferring the country’s oil revenues which are deposited in the Federal Reserve bank in New York. This will have a crippling affect if it is continued since Iraq is the most oil dependent country in the world. It can borrow for now from Iraqi banks but there comes a point where even that won’t be able to cover its huge obligations especially to government workers which takes up the largest portion of the budget.
Disarming the Resistance is beyond the power of the state at this point. The factions claim they are necessary as long as U.S. forces remain inside Iraq. They have also proven an important part of Iran’s regional defense plan as they can launch attacks throughout the Middle East as they just did during the current conflict to protect their sponsor.
There are already reports of ideas about how to make changes in the Resistance to try to appease the U.S. but that would not end their power. For instance, they could be integrated within the security forces while maintaining their weapons and separate command structure unofficially. Another is appointing independents to staff Zaidi’s new government who are beholden to the groups. This points to the Iraqi elite trying to buy time with Washington to try to avoid having to actually transform the Resistance.
According to Al Mada Iran is hoping that Trump will lose in the midterm elections in the U.S. and back off from his confrontation with Tehran. Its Iraqi allies could have the same hopes. That’s not a bad bet as Iraq is not a priority for the president just members of his national security staff. Trump is infamous for not making plans and a lack of patience. He could easily move onto something else and the pressure upon Baghdad could ease. In the meantime politicians are scrambling to come up with anything to make it look like they are doing something about the Resistance.
SOURCES
Arab News, “US wants ‘concrete actions’ on Iran from next Iraqi PM,” 5/6/26
Al Arabiya, “US sanctions Iraq’s deputy oil minister for helping Iran and its proxies: Treasury,” 5/7/26
Asharq Al-Awsat, “Factions Tighten Grip on Iraq Gov’t Formation Talks,” 5/6/26
Kurdistan 24, “U.S. Sanctions Iraqi Oil Official, Iran-Backed ‘Militias’,” 5/7/26
- “U.S. Warns Iraq: dismantle Iran-Aligned Militias or Face Consequences,” 4/26/26
- “US Announces $10 Million Reward for Information on Harakat al-Nujaba Leader Akram Al-Kabi,” 5/5/26
Al Mada, “From Guns to Offices: Quiet Arrangements Reshape the Role of Factions,” 5/5/26
Saadoon, Mustafa, “How Iraq’s Prime Minister-Designate Will Navigate U.S.-Iran Tensions,” Al Hurra, 4/30/26
Shafaq News, “US renews calls for dismantling Iran-aligned groups in Iraq after three reward offers,” 4/29/26
- “US warns CF over Abu Alaa Al-Walae’s role in PM nomination talks,” 4/27/26
Taqi, Ghassan, “Exclusive: Washington Demands from Iraq’s Next Government,” Al Hurra, 5/6/26
Van Heuvelen, Ben, “U.S. sanctions Maarij, escalating pressure over next Iraqi Cabinet,” Iraq Oil Report, 5/8/26
No comments:
Post a Comment