With Iran sapped, Iraqi politicians urge militias to stand down

Senior Iraqi politicians opposed to Iranian influence in the country have called for Tehran-backed militias to disarm and disband now that the Islamic Republic's sway over the region has diminished.

“Armed groups supported by Tehran have no choice but to accept change,” said Sheikh Abdullah al-Jaghifi, Secretary-General of the Ahrar al-Furat Movement.

Al-Jaghifi said Syria was a cautionary tale of how geopolitical transformations can unravel entrenched alliances. Tehran lost its oldest Arab ally there, the Assad dynasty, to hardline Islamist-led rebels close to Turkey.

Speaking to Iran International, al-Jaghifi predicted 2025 would bring major changes across Iraq and the broader region, with Iran's influence continuing to wane.

The remarks come after discussions over integrating the militias into the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) – a move presented as a means to depoliticize Iraq’s paramilitary landscape. Yet critics question the sincerity and effectiveness of the initiative.

Mithal al-Alusi, founder of the Democratic Party of the Iraqi Nation, dismissed the proposed merger as a semantic maneuver.

“Iran is using wordplay to maintain its grip on Iraq and is turning the country into a base for extremist operations,” he told Iran International. He warned that Iran-backed networks are involved in transferring funds, passports and weaponry under the guise of Iraqi state structures.

Al-Alusi argued that Hezbollah and Hamas are being financed with dollars funneled through Iraqi channels, calling the practice “a serious crime against Iraq and the region – against people killed whether Israelis, Palestinians, Lebanese, Syrians and Yemenis alike.”

The leadership in Baghdad is pressuring Tehran-aligned armed groups not to attack Israeli targets to avoid a punishing military response, The New Arab news outlet reported on Wednesday.

The move follows a reported effort by a senior Iranian military commander to urge Tehran's armed allies in Iraq and Yemen to stand down attacks on their Mideast nemesis, potentially signaling an Iranian desire for detente in the region.

Iran faces an ultimatum by US President Donald Trump to ink a new nuclear deal or face attack after its home front and armed allies in the region have been dealt historic military blows from Israel in over a year of war.