Hours after Iraq's ruling Coordination Framework coalition authorised Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi to monopolise weapons under state control, the Asaib Ahl al-Haq militia, led by Qais al-Khazali, announced that it had begun "implementing procedures to separate from the Popular Mobilisation Forces (PMF) ".
The group, regarded as one of Iran's most prominent allies in Iraq, said the move came in response to US pressure and as an attempt to retain its government representation after Washington rejected the participation of armed groups in the new government.
According to a statement issued by Asaib Ahl al-Haq , commonly known as "the Asaib", the decision comes "in line with the religious authority's call and the Coordination Framework's decision regarding restricting weapons to the state".
The group said a committee had been formed to inventory personnel, weapons and vehicles. The committee will also be responsible for "organising mechanisms of affiliation with the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces (the prime minister), in a manner consistent with the requirements of the state and its security institutions".
The group did not clarify what it meant by the phrase "separation from the Popular Mobilisation Forces" in its statement.
However, a group official told The New Arab in a brief comment that the move amounted to "authorising the government regarding any decision it takes concerning the Popular Mobilisation Forces, and separating the Asaib Ahl al-Haq brigades within the PMF from the political wing".
He added that "the issue of handing over weapons or placing them under state management depends on the government's vision, and the faction has no dictates or conditions".
US Chargé d'Affaires in Baghdad, Joshua Harris, praised the Coordination Framework's position supporting restrictions on factional weapons.
The remarks came during a meeting with Iraqi National Security Adviser Qasim al-Araji.
According to an official Iraqi statement, both sides praised the Coordination Framework's decision supporting government measures to restrict weapons to state control, stressing that the Framework's statement represented a roadmap for the country's stability and for avoiding anything that could undermine it.
Harris reaffirmed "the support of the United States government and President Donald Trump for the Iraqi government".
He said Washington supports "an independent Iraq with full sovereignty, and that the economy and development should be the driving force for the state and its people".
An Iraqi MP from Basra province said certain factions had rejected any discussion of their weapons from the outset.
The most prominent among them, he said, were Hezbollah Brigades , Harakat al-Nujaba and Sayyid al-Shuhada, along with the groups Saraya Awliya al-Dam, Ashab al-Kahf and Al-Badala.
He told The New Arab that these positions had recently been communicated verbally.
The MP added that other factions, including Asaib Ahl al-Haq and Imam Ali Brigades, were discussing “the political separation” of their brigades from their parent organisations within the PMF.
He said Washington and other parties could view such a step as a manoeuvre or an attempt to circumvent the issue, given that these groups have deeper connections than a simple declaration of separation, owing to their extensive influence within the state and official institutions.
Iraqi security expert Sarmad al-Bayati told The New Arab that "the obstacle lies with only two factions: Harakat al-Nujaba and Hezbollah Brigades".
He argued that "these two factions will not accept giving up their weapons, both for ideological reasons and because of their attachment to the concept of the Unity of Fronts and the Axis of Resistance managed by Tehran, which constitutes an important front that Iran will not allow to disintegrate".
Al-Bayati added that "the support received by Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi for the project of restricting weapons to state control has not been enjoyed by any Iraqi prime minister since 2003".
He said that "the current phase therefore represents an important moment in Iraq's modern history, and he must deal with it with both caution and firmness".
He also said that "Muqtada al-Sadr's decision to integrate Saraya al-Salam into the state could help support Al-Zaidi in achieving positive results in this project, which may not be completed quickly but instead requires considerable time, negotiations and mechanisms to bring it to completion".
The development comes days after the leader of the Shia National Movement (the Sadrist Movement), Muqtada al-Sadr, announced the separation of Saraya al-Salam from the movement and its incorporation into the state.
Iraq's newly formed government welcomed the move under Ali al-Zaidi.
However, other armed groups criticised the withdrawal of what they describe as the "resistance's weapons", including Iraq's Hezbollah Brigades and Harakat al-Nujaba, which said that its weapons were " sacred" . Article translated from Arabic by Afrah Almatwari. To read the original, click here .