Exclusive: The coordination framework pushes Al-Amiri and Al-Hakim to prevent clashes with the factions.
Exclusive: The coordination framework pushes Al-Amiri and Al-Hakim to prevent clashes with the factions.
2026-08-19
Shafaq News – Baghdad
An informed source reported on Wednesday that the special committee formed by the Coordinating Framework for Dialogue with armed factions refusing to hand over weapons has begun its meetings and contacts, with the aim of discussing mechanisms for implementing the decision to restrict weapons to the state.
The source told Shafaq News Agency that the committee includes Badr Organization leader Hadi al-Amiri and the head of the Hikma Movement, Ammar al-Hakim, and will undertake the task of dialogue and negotiation with the concerned factions, in addition to working to calm the recent escalation between Prime Minister Ali al-Zubaidi and a number of armed factions, particularly Kataib Hezbollah and Harakat al-Nujaba.
He added that the committee will act as an intermediary between al-Zaydi and his government team tasked with the weapons inventory file and the factions refusing to hand them over, in an attempt to reach understandings on the mechanisms for implementing the decision and to avoid the dispute turning into a field confrontation.
According to the source, the Coordination Framework’s move to form the committee and assign this task to al-Amiri and al-Hakim came amid fears of an armed clash between the security forces and the factions refusing to hand over their weapons, especially after the deadline of September 30.
He pointed out that the committee is seeking during the current stage to open direct negotiation channels with the factions, and to contain the political and security tension, in order to prevent the issue of restricting weapons from affecting security stability in the country.
The issue of armed factions is one of the most sensitive issues facing the Iraqi government, with the approach of September 30, which the main political forces have set as the deadline for restricting weapons to official institutions.
The State Administration Coalition, which includes the most prominent Shiite, Sunni and Kurdish political forces, stressed during its meeting on August 5 the need to restrict weapons to the state, and considered the parties that carry out activities that threaten the security of the country outside the framework of official institutions as “outlaws and must be fought.”
The coalition warned that any armed activity outside the framework of the state after September 30 would be dealt with according to the anti-terrorism law.
Following this, Iraqi security and military forces raised their readiness level throughout the country, and the leave of a number of commanders and officers was cancelled, while security agencies began implementing field movements and exercises in anticipation of any emergency or friction that might develop into an armed confrontation.
Last week, Baghdad witnessed hours of security tension coinciding with threats by armed factions to retaliate against Saudi Arabia after strikes targeted Popular Mobilization Forces sites, before it ended with contacts and a dawn meeting between Prime Minister Ali Faleh al-Zubaidi and Badr Organization leader Hadi al-Amiri, which led to a mutual calming and opened the way for diplomatic action to address the crisis.
Al-Amiri later called on the “Islamic Resistance” factions to postpone any military response against Saudi Arabia and to prioritize “Iraq’s higher interest,” but he returned and stressed during a meeting with a number of Popular Mobilization Forces leaders the importance of maintaining a high level of readiness.
The plan to restrict weapons does not have a unified stance from the armed factions.
While some forces expressed a willingness to reorganize their military and security relationship with the state, other factions, including Kataib Hezbollah, Harakat al-Nujaba and Kataib Sayyid al-Shuhada, announced their refusal to relinquish their military capabilities, and linked any discussion about their weapons to the end of the presence of foreign forces and ensuring the protection of Iraq from external attacks.
The September 30th date also coincides with the deadlines related to ending the military presence of the international coalition in Iraq, which some factions use as a basis for linking the future of their weapons to the withdrawal of foreign forces.
shafaq.com
