The Militia Digest

Militia channels carried press reports placing Kataib Hezbollah, Nujaba, Kata'ib Sayyid al-Shuhada, Ansar Allah al-Awfiya and al-Badala together in rejecting the surrender of drones and long-range missiles, although the reports did not quote the factions directly. The central dispute is 30 September: Al-Araby al-Jadeed described it as Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi’s deadline for surrendering weapons, while Alhurra described it as the start of regulation. A third account said the government would announce the plan’s principles in early October and implement them gradually. RojNews reported that stalled talks could lead al-Zaidi to close faction headquarters after the deadline. The five-faction alignment remains a press account, while Kata'ib Sayyid al-Shuhada’s categorical denial of an inventory or transfer is direct. Al-Ahad TV (AAH — official) captions described state control of weapons as consolidating centralization and 30 September as a sovereignty milestone. Legal expert Abbas al-Aqabi told the channel that the government would legally treat the weapons as illegitimate after that date and that regulation required legislation beforehand. Ufuq Center head Jumaa al-Atwani had told the same channel that linking withdrawal to weapons regulation was wrong and that the Coordination Framework lacked consensus, leaving the competing positions as guest arguments rather than an AAH declaration.

Late on 17 September, Sabereen News (KH — affiliated) reported an explosion in Sulaymaniyah and six minutes later said drones were heading toward targets in Sulaymaniyah. Al-Ghadeer TV (Badr Organization — official), Shabab al-Islam (Ashab al-Kahf — affiliated), Unit 10,000 (KH — affiliated) and Al-Ahad TV (AAH — official) also reported explosions there in the same hour. Earlier, Sabereen reported American warplanes over Erbil and an explosion in the Masif area, while Shabab al-Islam reported an explosion on Erbil’s outskirts. The overnight accounts follow five reported impacts around Sulaymaniyah reported in the desk's 14 September edition.

Prime Minister's security adviser Qasim al-Araji said Saudi Arabia supplied Iraq with timing, launch and impact coordinates and flight paths for the 11 September drone attack on East–West Pipeline facilities, which Riyadh attributed to Iraqi factions. He said Iraqi intelligence and technical surveillance independently led investigators to launch platforms. Al-Araji said the findings were being withheld until suspects could be arrested and put the interrupted pumping at 5 million barrels. His account conflicts with Jumaa al-Atwani’s statement on Al-Ahad TV that the government had confirmed Saudi Arabia possessed no evidence of an Iraq-launched attack. Naram-Sin Center director Haidar al-Barzanji, speaking on the same channel, said a political leader had told him that the first attack on Saudi Arabia was launched from Iraq. Separately, the Defence Ministry said a circulated cable alleging Saudi preparations to strike PMF headquarters was not an official document and was baseless. The ministry’s denial concerned the cable rather than the pipeline investigation.

Parliamentary Security and Defence Committee member Iskandar Witwit said the amended PMF law still awaits government transmission before the committee can place it on parliament’s agenda. He said the committee had revised every paragraph and that Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi had promised to send the bill soon for review, first reading and a vote. Witwit described the revised measure as modelled on the Defence Ministry because it would govern an integrated security institution. Al-Masalla reported that the proposal would give the PMF comparable structure, powers and budget and could raise its chairman to ministerial rank without creating a ministry. Those provisions remain a press description of the proposal, not enacted law. Despite Al-Ittijah TV’s earlier report that the measure would reach parliament by the end of September, the government still holds the next procedural move and no agenda date has been set.