Friday, 4 September 2026

Security Media Cell head Lt. Gen. Saad Maan said Friday that Baghdad had moved from asking whether factions could be disarmed to deciding how to implement weapons control. He said the government retained all options but did not identify them. Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein also told incoming U.S. Chargé d’affaires Steven Fagin that Iraq remained committed to bringing weapons under state control. Khalid Walid, of former PM Mohammed Shia al-Sudani's Reconstruction and Development Coalition, told Shafaq News that a Coordination Framework committee was making progress with armed factions before September 30, when the current U.S.-led coalition military mission is scheduled to end. But no faction or Iraqi state authority has confirmed or accepted an agreement. Parliamentary Finance Committee member Jamal Kocher said failure to meet the weapons-control timetable could bring U.S. Sanctions that threaten salaries, debt payments and the wider economy, while the prime minister and Finance Ministry said salaries were secured.

Ali al-Asadi (Nujaba — political council head) said Friday after meetings with senior Coordination Framework leaders that Nujaba would not give up what it calls “resistance weapons”. He also backed preserving the PMF as a national institution and said Nujaba would stay outside formal politics. Salem al-Absawi (Sadiqoun MP) told Al-Ahad TV (AAH — official) that parliament could escalate against PMF chairman Faleh al-Fayyad and ultimately remove him. The pressure carried by Al-Ahad has advanced from a proposed summons on August 29 to an MP's public removal warning. Fayyad and the PMF leadership have not answered. An Iraqi court meanwhile sentenced three men to 15 years for firing Katyusha rockets near an Iraqi counterterrorism battalion and a French coalition team at K1 on March 13. Al-Kornet al-Kata'ibi (KSS — affiliated) called the convicted men “mujahideen”. After an armed attack on a PMF Brigade 16 position at Tun Kopru at 2 a.m. On September 3 killed Ali Bahjat Hamid, Sabereen News (KH — affiliated) called him “wrongfully killed,” while Al-Nujaba TV (Nujaba — official) reported his funeral without that wording.

The Water Resources Ministry said Iraq would cover the cost of Turkish water infrastructure through a daily oil allocation rather than cash. Ministry spokesperson Khalid Shamal said six water-harvesting dams were planned in Nineveh, Karbala, Anbar and Muthanna, with further projects possible in Diyala, Wasit and Maysan. The framework also covers land reclamation, regulating dams and closed irrigation systems, with Turkish companies taking part in implementation. Shamal put national water storage above 31 billion cubic metres, including 7.3 billion at Mosul Dam and 5 billion at Haditha. Separately, Iraq said it was committed to transitioning to program- and performance-based budgeting.

The Iraqi National Intelligence Service said Thursday that it had repatriated Zaid Ibrahim Ali, known as Zaid al-Muharib, from Syria and handed him to judicial authorities. INIS accused the outspoken social-media critic of extortion, defamation and organized crime and said several arrest warrants had been issued against him. A security source separately said INIS had repatriated a suspect identified only as M.W. From Germany. The source said M.W. Was accused of participating in ISIS’s June 12, 2014 Camp Speicher massacre and other major attacks in Iraq. The two foreign repatriations — Zaid from Syria and M.W. From Germany — place both cases before Iraqi authorities, with Zaid’s handover to the judiciary expressly announced.

Protesters demanded public-sector jobs in Basra and Anbar. Separately, al-Dhahawi has announced an open sit-in for September 7. The announcement does not specify its cause or location. The sit-in adds a dated mobilization point alongside job protests in two provinces, although it cannot be tied to their demands.

Turkish Airlines and Pegasus suspended flights serving Iraq and the Kurdistan Region. Separately, Dundee United signed Iraq midfielder Zidane Iqbal from Utrecht on a two-year contract, with an option for another 12 months. The 23-year-old has 28 Iraq caps.

Ali al-Asadi (Nujaba — political council head) said Friday that Nujaba would not give up what it calls resistance weapons. After meetings with senior Coordination Framework leaders, he also backed preserving the PMF as a national institution. He reiterated that Nujaba would remain outside formal politics. Security Media Cell head Lt. Gen. Saad Maan said the government had moved from whether factions could be disarmed to how, while retaining “all options”. The refusal followed Akram al-Kaabi’s (Nujaba — secretary-general) September 2 threat that U.S. Soldiers remaining after September 30 would not return safely. Al-Kornet al-Kata'ibi (KSS — affiliated) meanwhile called three men given 15-year sentences for a K1 rocket attack “mujahideen”. The court document it posted said they were convicted of firing Katyusha rockets on March 13 near an Iraqi counterterrorism battalion and a French coalition team.

Salem al-Absawi (Sadiqoun MP) told Al-Ahad TV (AAH — official) that parliament could escalate against PMF chairman Faleh al-Fayyad and ultimately remove him. He blamed Fayyad for ignoring notice and missing parliament, and said families of people he said were killed in the purported Saudi-American bombardment discussed on August 29 could go to court. Parliament has not adopted that position, and no dismissal proceeding was announced. The previous evening, political researcher Mohammed al-Fandi accused Fayyad of boycotting parliament and obstructing the PMF law. Political affairs commentator Anwar al-Anzi accused him of failing to report attacks on the PMF, while a martyr’s father held him responsible for martyrs’ blood. Political analyst Ali Nasser separately said the judiciary could examine the matter and that the prime minister could replace Fayyad if failure were established. The pressure carried by Al-Ahad has advanced from a proposed summons on August 29 to an MP’s public removal warning. Fayyad and the PMF leadership have not answered.

Baa Platform (Badr Organization — official social media) said an armed attack at 2 a.m. On September 3 against a PMF Brigade 16 position at Tun Kopru, Kirkuk, killed Ali Bahjat Hamid and wounded several fighters. The PMF had earlier named Junaid Ismat Bahjat as one wounded fighter. Al-Ghadeer TV (Badr Organization — official) and Al-Kornet al-Kata'ibi (KSS — affiliated) carried Hamid’s funeral. Sabereen News (KH — affiliated) and Unit 10,000 (KH — affiliated) called him “wrongfully killed,” while Al-Nujaba TV (Nujaba — official) and iNEWS (KSS — affiliated) reported the funeral without that wording. iNEWS separately reported a broad pursuit operation north of Kirkuk, but gave no participating force or outcome. Press reports also described an Iraqi-force operation after a deadly PMF checkpoint attack, but did not tie it to Tun Kopru.

Sabereen News said a “Saudi enemy” vessel had been targeted in the Red Sea. Al-Ittijah TV (KH — official) and Al-Nujaba TV carried the item as “reports,” while Unit 10,000 labelled it initial. The posts did not identify the vessel or precise location. A day earlier, Sabereen, Al-Kornet and Al-Ahad circulated reports of missiles launched toward the Strait of Hormuz. Sabereen and Al-Ahad said the missiles were directed toward “non-compliant ships,” while Al-Kornet referred only to the strait. Sabereen separately said Haydariya rockets hit Saudi-aligned forces in Mokha.