Pro-Iran Factions Keep up Escalation against Iraqi President, PM, US

Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi. (Reuters)
Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi. (Reuters)
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Pro-Iran Factions Keep up Escalation against Iraqi President, PM, US

Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi. (Reuters)
Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi. (Reuters)

Iran-backed factions in Iraq are increasing their threats against Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi and President Barham Salih as the one-year anniversary of the assassination of Iran’s Quds Force commander Qassem Soleimani and Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) deputy chief Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis draws near.

Soleimani and Muhandis were killed in a US drone strike near Baghdad airport in January 2020.

The escalation is taking place despite the outward calls for calm by the pro-Iran factions. Their actions, however, belie their words, prompting observers to speculate that they will continue to forge ahead towards a confrontation as long as relations between Washington and Tehran continue to be strained.

Less than a week after the US embassy in Baghdad was struck by a barrage of rockets, the Qassem al-Jabarin Brigade announced on Sunday that it had carried out an attack – the second in days – against a logistic convoy belonging to the international coalition against ISIS in Babylon south of Baghdad.

In a statement on Sunday, the brigade pledged to continue attacks against the “American occupier” in Iraq.

Another faction, the Abu al-Fadel al-Abbas Brigades, went even further and threatened the president and prime minister if they do not release militia members, who were detained for their involvement in past attacks on American interests in Iraq.

An informed source said it is impossible for the armed factions to cease attacks against American positions or even against the government and state institutions.

In remarks to Asharq Al-Awsat, it said that the conflict being played out on Iraqi soil is linked to Washington’s relations with Tehran.

“As long as the ties are bad, then Tehran will continue to order its proxies to fight the US. Their clash with the government and Iraqi state is tied to their efforts to maintain gains that were acquired through the force of arms,” it added, predicting more attacks against American interests in the coming days.

Meanwhile, debate continued to rage in Iraq over the arrest of Asaib Ahl al-Haq militants for their involvement in recent attacks on the Green Zone and US embassy in Baghdad.

A leading member of the Kataib Hezbollah militia slammed Kadhimi for his soft stance towards the US and his rejection of the latest attack on its mission.

Military spokesman of the militia, Abou Ali al-Askari, accused the premier of “treachery”, warning him “against testing the patience of the resistance from now on.”

His comments sparked outrage in Iraq over the perceived government and security forces’ leniency in dealing with such “insults” from the militias.



Lebanon Bans Dealing with Hezbollah Financial Entity

A view shows Lebanon's Central Bank building in Beirut, Lebanon April 4, 2025. REUTERS/Mohamed Azakir/File Photo
A view shows Lebanon's Central Bank building in Beirut, Lebanon April 4, 2025. REUTERS/Mohamed Azakir/File Photo
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Lebanon Bans Dealing with Hezbollah Financial Entity

A view shows Lebanon's Central Bank building in Beirut, Lebanon April 4, 2025. REUTERS/Mohamed Azakir/File Photo
A view shows Lebanon's Central Bank building in Beirut, Lebanon April 4, 2025. REUTERS/Mohamed Azakir/File Photo

Lebanon's central bank has banned banks and brokerages from dealing with a Hezbollah-affiliated financial institution, according to a circular, a sign of the group's diminished sway over state affairs since its devastating war with Israel.

Keeping up military pressure on the Iran-backed group, Israel on Tuesday launched some of its heaviest airstrikes since a ceasefire in November, saying it hit training camps and weapons depots in east Lebanon. A security source in Lebanon said 12 people were killed, five of them Hezbollah fighters, Reuters reported.

Hezbollah has faced mounting pressures since the war, including financial ones.

In the circular, dated July 14 and reviewed by Reuters, Banque du Liban prohibited all licensed financial institutions in Lebanon from dealing directly or indirectly with unlicensed entities and listed Hezbollah's Al-Qard Al-Hassan as an example.

The US Department of Treasury imposed sanctions on Al-Qard Al-Hassan in 2007, saying Hezbollah used it as a cover to manage "financial activities and gain access to the international financial system".

Bolstered by its powerful arsenal, Hezbollah had long exercised decisive influence over Lebanese state affairs, but it was unable to impose its will in the formation of a post-war government in February.

Al-Qard Al-Hassan, founded in 1983, describes itself as a charitable organisation which provides loans to people according to Islamic principles that forbid interest. Israel struck some of its branches during its war with Hezbollah last year.

Operating as a not-for-profit organisation under a licence granted by the Lebanese government, it has more than 30 branches, mostly in southern Lebanon and the Bekaa Valley.

SHADOW ECONOMY

A Lebanese official said the central bank move had been in the works for months, and reflected US pressure on Lebanon to take action against Hezbollah's financial wing.

Nassib Ghobril, chief economist at Byblos Bank, said Lebanese banks were already careful to avoid dealing with Al-Qard Al-Hassan because it is under US sanctions.

"The important point is that finally the authorities are addressing the shadow economy in Lebanon, which is the real problem," he said, adding that authorities had long failed to address its "toxic effects".

In June, the European Commission included Lebanon in an updated list of high-risk jurisdictions presenting strategic deficiencies in their national anti-money laundering and countering the financing of terrorism.

Last year, global financial crime watchdog FATF placed Lebanon on its "grey list" of countries under special scrutiny.