Militia

Iranian-backed militias and Iran have already targeted the Kurdistan region with more than 1,000 drone and missile attacks since February 2026, and it will be vulnerable if the US withdraws.

A video of Hadi al-Amiri saying "the resistance stood bravely in the face of (the October fitna, as it was dubbed) and preserved the state and political system,” began circulating.

In recent months, Hamas’s security apparatuses have operated on several fronts in an attempt to confront the militias opposing the organization.

“Iraq's Central Criminal Court has sentenced Amir Rahim Jabar Lazim to 15 years in prison under the Anti-Terrorism Law," read the announcement shared by the victim, journalist Shelly Kittelson.

Upon Ghalibaf’s arrival, he insisted that the two countries needed to strengthen a “new regional order” and denounced “foreign interference.”

Iran will use the militias to do whatever is necessary to preserve its role in Iraq, while also aiming to weaken its Kurdish rivals in the country.

Iran-backed militias in Iraq have roots stretching back to the 1980's and are the product of decades of Iranian policy aimed at cultivating armed proxies beyond its borders.

Dismantling armed militias could discourage locals from working with Israel, says a Gaza resident. "People will think twice for fear of being abandoned."

Members of the Christian community have been arbitrarily detained, with their families extorted for payments in exchange for their release, the Christian Solidarity International report claimed.

Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi's office denounced the strikes, stating that it is the Iraqi government’s responsibility to deal with security concerns originating within its borders.