The weekend marked a paradox in Iranian strategy towards Iraq. On the one hand there were a series of attacks upon the Iraqi oil industry and on the other a tanker with Iraqi petroleum passed through the Strait of Hormuz after Tehran said Baghdad would be exempt from its blockade.
On April 4 there were six attacks upon oil sites in southern Iraq. Drones targeted the Burjisiya logistics complex in Iran for the second time. It is used by international oil and logistics companies. One drone destroyed a warehouse belonging to KBR while another crashed outside the facility. At the Rumaila oil field in Basra one drone hit a warehouse used by the service firm Schlumberger causing a fire while another struck a Baker Hughes warehouse that injured four workers. Another KBR warehouse was hit at the Majnoon oil field also in Basra. The Buzurgan oil field in Maysan was also struck. This is part of Tehran’s strategy to attack its neighbor’s petroleum industry to raise prices and put pressure upon President Trump to end the war. It has resulted in foreign workers leaving and production to be drastically cut.
The paradox was Iran exempted Iraq from attacks in the Strait of Hormuz allowing its oil to flow through once again. The State Oil Marketing Organization asked customers to submit schedules for oil exports. The big question is who will be willing to make the journey?
Economic analyst Ziyad al-Hashemi told Iraqi News that Iraq’s southern fields are operating under Force Majeure during the war. Proof of the end of hostilities has to be given to lift that status and the attacks prove that has not happened. The exit of foreign workers also means the fields cannot produce at capacity. Finally tankers have no guarantee they will be safe in and out of the Persian Gulf.
Similarly Al Alam reported that foreign tanker companies will have to be contracted by Iraq. They will have to be from countries that are neutral in the war and work with the Iranian Revolutionary Guard to ensure their passage in and out of Hormuz. Again this is a huge risk.
Neither article mentioned it but the insurgence will be sky high on these ships.
Despite all that the second tanker with Iraqi oil passed through Hormuz on April 5. It’s likely that traffic will be in very small numbers given all these issues and not provide much relief to Iraq which was selling over 3 million barrels a day before the war. Today it is only producing just over 1 million barrels. Ramping up output for an unknown amount of ships will be impossible to plan for.
From Sunday to Monday the Iranians went after its Kurdish opposition in Iraq once again. On April 5 the Kurdistan Democratic Party Iran (KDPI) was hit in its camp in Koya, Irbil. The party said it had been attacked 100 times since the start of the conflict. The next day the Komala party was hit by airstrikes twice and the KDPI two more times. Explosions were also heard in Soran, Irbil were the Kurdish opposition is also based. There have been reports that the U.S. is lobbying Iranian Kurds to go to battle with Tehran. These are warnings to not take that path.
There was more news about the pro-Iran Resistance going after Iraq’s neighbors. Ashab al-Kahf claimed an attack upon U.S. interests in Kuwait. Saraya Awliya al-Dam released a video of drones going after the Ali al-Salam base in Kuwait, Muwafaq al-Salti base in Jordan and a U.S. base in Qasrak, Syria. Harakat al-Nuaba also threatened U.S. interests throughout the Middle East. This is part of Iran’s asymmetrical war plan of attacking the entire region to spread the costs of the war and show that the U.S. cannot protect its friends.
The Resistance and Iran also carried out operations within Iraq. A drone crashed in Radwaniya, Baghdad heading for the airport. There were then two separate attacks upon the logistics center at the facility with smoke seen afterwards. The U.S. Embassy in Baghdad saw two assaults. Five civilians were injured from debris when the Balad Air Base in Salahaddin was attacked. This was a direct threat to the Iraqi forces as there are no international forces at Balad.
The American defense contractor announced that a U.S. worker was killed in a drone strike upon Irbil on March 24. One Kenyan workers also died and five more were injured in the same incident. This is the first American fatality.
The ruling Coordination Framework is still trying to get the Resistance to halt its operations and agree to a ceasefire. The head of Badr Hadi Amiri has now been tasked with the job. No progress has been made and there is no reason why it will succeed. Iran has the upper hand and has no reason to compromise and call off its Iraqi allies.
The U.S. and Israel focused upon Salahaddin province during the day. At 2 am the Turkmen 52nd Hashd Brigade was attacked. At 8 am there were two airstrikes upon a Hashd headquarters in Siniya in the Biji district. At 10 pm the 52nd Brigade was targeted again in Tuz Kharmato. Then in the middle of the night on Monday another headquarters was hit in the same area. None of these are main members of the Resistance. It’s another sign that Washington and Jerusalem have no strategy in Iraq and are hitting targets of opportunity.
SOURCES
Al Alam, “Hormuz “Open” … Will the Iranian Exemption Guarantee the Flow of Iraqi Oil Amidst the Flames of War?” 4/5/26
Iraq Oil Report, “Drone strikes signal escalating threat to Iraqi oil sector,” 4/5/26
Rudaw, “Drone, missile attacks target Iranian Kurdish opposition sites across Kurdistan Region,” 4/5/26
Salem, Amr, “Drone attack kills US defense contractor’s worker in Iraq,” Iraqi News, 4/5/26
- “Iraqi oil tanker crosses Strait of Hormuz following Iranian exemption,” Iraqi News, 4/5/26
Al-Samarraie, Jawad, “Expert: Why Iran’s Hormuz gift can’t save Iraq’s paralyzed oil industry,” Iraqi News, 4/5/26
- “Islamic resistance in Iraq targets U.S. interests in Kuwait,” Iraqi News, 4/5/26
Shafaq News, “A drone crashed near Baghdad International Airport,” 4/5/26
- “Five civilians injured in an attack targeting Balad Air Base in Salah al-Din,” 4/5/26
- “”Saraya al-Dam” claims responsibility for bombing three countries, and “al-Nujaba” threatens Trump on Tuesday (video),” 4/5/26
Shafaq News, “Fifth in 24 hours: Warplanes bomb a Popular Mobilization Forces headquarters east of Salah al-Din,” 4/5/26
- “Source: Iraq’s CF seeks ‘temporary truce’ between IRI and US forces,” 4/5/26
- “Two drones targeted the “American Support” headquarters west of Baghdad,” 4/5/26
- "Washington: Two attacks targeting American diplomats in Baghdad," 4/5/26
Tan, Florence, "Iraq urges customers to send oil loading plans with Hormuz exemption, document shows,” Reuters, 4/5/26
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