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Iraq Pushes Back Deadline for Factions to Disarm

This handout photograph taken and released by the Iraq's Prime Minister Media Office on August 19, 2026 shows Iran's Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf (R) shaking hands with Iraq's Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi before their meeting in Baghdad. (Iraq's Prime Minister Media Office / AFP)
This handout photograph taken and released by the Iraq's Prime Minister Media Office on August 19, 2026 shows Iran's Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf (R) shaking hands with Iraq's Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi before their meeting in Baghdad. (Iraq's Prime Minister Media Office / AFP)
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Iraq Pushes Back Deadline for Factions to Disarm

This handout photograph taken and released by the Iraq's Prime Minister Media Office on August 19, 2026 shows Iran's Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf (R) shaking hands with Iraq's Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi before their meeting in Baghdad. (Iraq's Prime Minister Media Office / AFP)
This handout photograph taken and released by the Iraq's Prime Minister Media Office on August 19, 2026 shows Iran's Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf (R) shaking hands with Iraq's Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi before their meeting in Baghdad. (Iraq's Prime Minister Media Office / AFP)

A senior Iraqi official pushed back a September 30 deadline for pro-Iran factions to hand over their weapons, without offering an explanation for the move or providing a new date.

Iraq has come under pressure from the United States to rein in armed factions, particularly those close to Iran.

The US and Iran have been at war since February 28, drawing in other countries in the region as well as non-state groups backed by the Islamic republic.

For several months, Iraq's government has stood by its deadline, but on Sunday, the security adviser to the prime minister, Qasim al-Araji, told state media the process would only begin at the end of next month.

"September 30 is the date for the international coalition to depart, not the deadline to hand over weapons," Araji told the Al Iraqiya broadcaster, referring to the coalition of US-led forces.

Government spokesman Haider al-Aboudi had made a similar announcement to local media on Friday, despite announcing in June that factions had until the end of September to disarm.

September 30, he said, was "the date for the international coalition to end its presence, not the deadline for armed factions... Perhaps people are confusing the two."

Since taking office in May, Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi has pledged to ensure the armed factions that emerged in the years that followed the US-led invasion hand over their weapons to the state.

While some factions have in recent weeks said they would join state institutions, others, in particular those closer to Iran, are refusing.

"The situation is extremely complicated," a government official told AFP, requesting anonymity because he was not authorized to speak on the matter.

"The government is insisting on closing the weapons file; but faction leaders are determined to hold onto their weapons because they believe disarming would serve Israel and the United States."

The most powerful armed factions in Iraq include Kataib Hezbollah, a part of Iran's so-called "Axis of Resistance" against the US and Israel.

Another Iraqi source told AFP that Iran views its proxies in the region, "especially in Iraq, as a source of strength it refuses to give up".

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Arab World

Yemeni Forces Consolidate West Coast Gains, Reinforce Bab al-Mandab Positions

Yemeni government fighters sit in the back of a vehicle near Dhubab, Taiz Governorate, Yemen, in this still image taken from video released October 5, 2026. Southern Giants Brigades/Handout via REUTERS
Yemeni government fighters sit in the back of a vehicle near Dhubab, Taiz Governorate, Yemen, in this still image taken from video released October 5, 2026. Southern Giants Brigades/Handout via REUTERS
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Yemeni Forces Consolidate West Coast Gains, Reinforce Bab al-Mandab Positions

Yemeni government fighters sit in the back of a vehicle near Dhubab, Taiz Governorate, Yemen, in this still image taken from video released October 5, 2026. Southern Giants Brigades/Handout via REUTERS
Yemeni government fighters sit in the back of a vehicle near Dhubab, Taiz Governorate, Yemen, in this still image taken from video released October 5, 2026. Southern Giants Brigades/Handout via REUTERS

Yemeni armed forces consolidated gains along the western coast and reinforced positions overlooking the Bab al-Mandab Strait as they pushed ahead in al-Wazi'iyah district in western Taiz province under Operation “Dawn of Yemen.” Fighting with the Houthis continued in the southern Taiz countryside and on fronts around the city.

The armed forces said they had neutralized more than 1,800 Houthi fighters in recent hours. Army figures put Houthi losses at nearly 10,000 killed or wounded over two weeks of air and ground strikes across multiple fronts.

Nation Shield forces, the Giants Brigades and the Joint Forces took full control of the Kahboub front, according to Yemeni military media. The advance strengthens government forces’ hold on heights overlooking Bab al-Mandab and boosts their ability to secure the strategic corridor as operations continue along the western coast.

Taiz province’s emergency committee suspended classes at public, community and private schools, institutes, colleges and universities in districts that have come under Houthi control. It also placed government employees there on temporary leave, citing exceptional security conditions.

The United Nations warned of a worsening humanitarian situation in Taiz as Houthi attacks spread, displacement rises and aid access faces growing restrictions. Major roads remain closed, adding to pressure on services and limited resources.

The eastern road into Taiz city remains closed, the United Nations said in a recent report. Road closures between Aden and Taiz have disrupted a major supply route from warehouses in Aden, hampering aid agencies’ ability to reach those affected and meet growing needs.

Arab World

Iraq Rejects Syrian Request to Repatriate 4,000 Suspected ISIS Detainees

Members of the Iraqi border forces patrol along a concrete wall on the Iraqi-Syrian border, in the town of al-Baghuz in the Al-Qaim district of western Iraq, on January 21, 2026. (AFP)
Members of the Iraqi border forces patrol along a concrete wall on the Iraqi-Syrian border, in the town of al-Baghuz in the Al-Qaim district of western Iraq, on January 21, 2026. (AFP)
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Iraq Rejects Syrian Request to Repatriate 4,000 Suspected ISIS Detainees

Members of the Iraqi border forces patrol along a concrete wall on the Iraqi-Syrian border, in the town of al-Baghuz in the Al-Qaim district of western Iraq, on January 21, 2026. (AFP)
Members of the Iraqi border forces patrol along a concrete wall on the Iraqi-Syrian border, in the town of al-Baghuz in the Al-Qaim district of western Iraq, on January 21, 2026. (AFP)

Iraq has rejected Syria's request to repatriate thousands of suspected ISIS members transferred from Syrian detention centers to Iraqi custody earlier this year, a senior Iraqi security official said on Wednesday.

Iraqi National Security Advisor Qasim al-Aboudi said that a meeting had been held recently between Syria, Iraq and the United States to discuss the fate of the prisoners.

Al-Aboudi said Syria had requested that the 4,000 Syrian prisoners be handed over to be tried in Syria, but Iraq refused. Iraq has repatriated about 50 Syrian detainees who were determined not to be ISIS members, he told The Associated Press, while the Syrian prisoners remaining in Iraq include about 400 who are believed to be high-level members of the extremist group.

“Iraq is conducting investigations, and anyone proved to have committed crimes in Iraq will be tried under Iraqi law,” he said.

Some prisoners could later be transferred to their home countries to complete their sentences, he said.

Syria did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

More than 5,700 prisoners with alleged ISIS ties — including some 4,000 Syrians — were transferred from northeast Syria to Iraq after fighting broke out in January between Syrian government forces and the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, which had long guarded the detention centers where they were held.

Some ISIS-linked prisoners managed to flee during the chaos of the clashes, and there were fears that a larger-scale escape would take place. While the extremist group lost control of the territory it once seized in Iraq and Syria years ago, its cells still periodically carry out attacks in both countries.

The discussions about the prisoners' fate come as the United States has ended a 12-year mission to fight ISIS in Iraq, with the last US troops withdrawing from the country last month.

Al-Aboudi said Iraq has asked for financial support from the US and other countries taking part in the global coalition against ISIS to help with the costs of housing the prisoners.

“Iraq asked for an allocation of $500 million. The coalition promised support, but Iraq is still waiting,” he said.

A US defense official and the office of Tom Barrack, the US envoy to Syria and Iraq, referred questions about the prisoners to Iraqi and Syrian authorities.

Many of the prisoners transferred to Iraq had been held in Syria for years without charges. Rights groups have raised concerns about detention conditions in both countries.

Arab World

Arab Parliament President Stresses Houthi Attacks on Saudi Arabia Pose Direct Threat to Regional Security

Arab Parliament President Stresses Houthi Attacks on Saudi Arabia Pose Direct Threat to Regional Security
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Arab Parliament President Stresses Houthi Attacks on Saudi Arabia Pose Direct Threat to Regional Security

Arab Parliament President Stresses Houthi Attacks on Saudi Arabia Pose Direct Threat to Regional Security

President of the Arab Parliament Mohammed bin Ahmed Al-Yamahi stressed that repeated terrorist attacks by the Houthi militia against Saudi Arabia and its civilian and oil facilities pose a direct threat to regional security.

During his speech at the 153rd Assembly of the Inter-Parliamentary Union in Arusha, United Republic of Tanzania, Al-Yamahi addressed Iranian attacks that targeted several Arab countries and threatened civilians, infrastructure, and vital facilities, SPA reported.

He also discussed regional escalation and related threats to the security of Arab countries. He called on the international community to move beyond condemnation and take measures to protect states and their sovereignty and compel the parties to respect international law.