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Pro-Iran Iraqi Armed Group Says Will Stop US Embassy Attacks, Under Conditions

A fire burns outside the grounds of the US Embassy headquarters in Baghdad's fortified "Green Zone" on March 17, 2026 following a drone and rocket attack according to security officials. (AFP)
A fire burns outside the grounds of the US Embassy headquarters in Baghdad's fortified "Green Zone" on March 17, 2026 following a drone and rocket attack according to security officials. (AFP)
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Pro-Iran Iraqi Armed Group Says Will Stop US Embassy Attacks, Under Conditions

A fire burns outside the grounds of the US Embassy headquarters in Baghdad's fortified "Green Zone" on March 17, 2026 following a drone and rocket attack according to security officials. (AFP)
A fire burns outside the grounds of the US Embassy headquarters in Baghdad's fortified "Green Zone" on March 17, 2026 following a drone and rocket attack according to security officials. (AFP)

An influential pro-Iranian armed group in Iraq pledged early Thursday to stop attacking the US embassy for five days, subject to several conditions including that Israel stop strikes on parts of Beirut.

AFP reported no drone or rocket attacks so far on the US embassy in Iraq's capital Baghdad between Wednesday night and Thursday morning.

The country has been unwillingly drawn into the regional conflict triggered by the US-Israel attack on its neighbor Iran on February 28.

Strikes have targeted Iran-backed groups, which in turn have claimed near daily attacks on US interests in Iraq and across the region.

Kataib Hezbollah said the group's secretary-general had "issued orders to suspend operations targeting the US Embassy in Baghdad for a period of five days".

In a statement the Iran-backed group -- designated by Washington as a "terrorist organization" -- stipulated several conditions, including Israel "ceasing its bombardment" of southern Beirut suburbs, and "a commitment to refrain from bombing residential areas in Baghdad and other provinces".

Whenever "the enemy violates" the truce "the response will be immediate", it said, warning of an "escalation of strikes" after the five-day period.

The US embassy has been targeted by drone and rocket attacks several times in recent days, with air defenses intercepting most of the projectiles.

A US diplomatic and logistics center at Baghdad International Airport, which houses military personnel, has also been regularly targeted.

AFP journalists reported Wednesday morning at least four explosions in the city of Erbil, the capital of the Kurdistan region.

It was unclear what the target was and the projectiles were intercepted over the city, home to a major US consulate complex, while its airport houses US-led coalition troops.

And a strike near Iraq's western border with Syria on Wednesday killed three fighters from the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF), the alliance said.

The fighters from the alliance -- now part of Iraq's regular armed forces -- were hit in a US or Israeli strike that targeted their main command center in Anbar province.

Pro-Iran factions also have brigades that operate within the alliance, but have a reputation for acting on their own.

- Gas stoppage -

The war has also battered Iraq's already fragile economy.

The country's gas imports from Iran were halted on Wednesday, authorities said, the cutoff coming as Baghdad barely had time to celebrate a deal to export a fraction of its oil production through Türkiye after disruptions to shipments through the Strait of Hormuz.

The electricity ministry's spokesperson Ahmed Moussa told the Iraqi News Agency (INA) that "due to regional developments, Iranian gas supplies to Iraq completely halted an hour ago," cutting about 3,100 megawatts of power, which will "certainly affect the grid".

He sought, however, to calm fears of more frequent blackouts, saying the ministry will instead use "alternative fuels and domestic gas reserves".

News of the gas stoppage came after Tehran denounced a US-Israeli strike on Iranian facilities exploiting the vast South Pars/North Dome gas field.

Despite its abundant oil and gas reserves, Iraq's power plants are highly dependent on gas imported from Iran, which supplies about a third of the country's needs.

Electricity shortages are already a frequent complaint in Iraq, which suffers from endemic corruption and dilapidated public infrastructure.

Most households rely on private generators to compensate for daily power cuts.

Early Wednesday, Iraq said it resumed oil exports from its fields in the northern province of Kirkuk in agreement with the autonomous Kurdistan Region, through which the pipeline to Türkiye’s port of Ceyhan runs.

But it will export 250,000 barrels per day, only a fraction of the 3.5 million before the war.

However, Iraq, whose crude sales make up 90 percent of its foreign revenue, had few options after Iran effectively shuttered the Strait of Hormuz, through which Iraq previously shipped most of its oil from the southern Basra fields.

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Arab World

'War Has Aged Us': Lebanon's Kids Aren't Alright

Theater helps displaced Lebanese children overcome the pain of war. Anwar AMRO / AFP
Theater helps displaced Lebanese children overcome the pain of war. Anwar AMRO / AFP
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'War Has Aged Us': Lebanon's Kids Aren't Alright

Theater helps displaced Lebanese children overcome the pain of war. Anwar AMRO / AFP
Theater helps displaced Lebanese children overcome the pain of war. Anwar AMRO / AFP

Forced by yet another war in Lebanon to flee his home for the second time in just two years, and mourning lost relatives and friends, Hassan Kiki said he feels much older than 16.

"War has aged us... We have lived through what no one else has," the tall teen from south Lebanon told AFP in Beirut.

"I miss my school, my friends... I lost two cousins and two friends in a massacre in Shehabiyeh," he added, referring to a deadly Israeli strike in his town that killed at least seven people on March 11.

Kiki is among more than a million people Lebanese authorities have registered as displaced since the country was drawn into the Middle East war on March 2.

On that day, the Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah launched rockets towards Israel to avenge the killing of supreme leader Ali Khamenei.

Israel, which never stopped bombing Lebanon despite a 2024 truce that sought to end the last war with Hezbollah, responded with widespread strikes, ground operations along the border, and an evacuation warning for swathes of the country.

For many young Lebanese caught in the crossfire, their formative years have been jeopardized by repeated conflicts and crises.

"My childhood is gone," said Kiki.

"Material losses can be made up for, but people do not come back."

Since 2019, Lebanese have been battling a financial crisis that has locked them out of their bank deposits, while the Covid pandemic made life even harder for everyone.

Beirut's port exploded the following year in one of the world's largest non-nuclear blasts, destroying swathes of the Lebanese capital, and killing more than 220 people.

- 'Dreams on hold' -

The first time Zahraa Fares experienced war was in 2024, when she was just 14.

"We were still discovering what we like to do, what activities we enjoy, how we like to spend our days, then we were displaced... and could not do anything", said the now-16-year-old, who escaped the southern city of Nabatiyeh.

Fares, who said she now feels "mentally crushed", found relief in an acting workshop in Beirut's Lebanese National Theater intended to support war-affected youth like herself.

Wassim al-Halabi, a 20-year-old Syrian who fled the war in his country nine years ago and is still living in Lebanon, has found himself stuck in another conflict.

Working in a restaurant since the 2024 war forced him out of university, Halabi said he was "starting from zero to be able to stand on my two feet again, but war started again".

"Our dreams are now on hold until the war ends."

Lebanese authorities on Thursday said Israeli strikes have killed more than 1,000 people since March 2.

The toll includes 118 children.

"Cumulative trauma, cumulative adverse experiences and ongoing instability and unpredictability certainly put these children at higher risk... of developing psychiatric disorders and negative mental health outcomes," Evelyne Baroud, a child and adolescent psychiatrist told AFP.

"Witnessing violence, physical assaults, killings, forced displacement, losing one's home, loss of a parent, all of these carry a very high risk of developing post-traumatic stress disorder."

- Generational trauma -

Lebanon has been mired in conflicts and crises for decades, the worst of which was the 15-year civil war that erupted in 1975 and which divided the country into warring sectarian fiefdoms.

For many years since the end of that war, which killed 150,000 people and left 17,000 more missing, bitter political divisions continued to plague Lebanon.

The war also saw an Israeli invasion and occupation of southern Lebanon until 2000.

While young Lebanese grew up hearing stories of war from their parents, they never expected to have to live through one themselves.

"My mother used to tell us about how they would be displaced, hear airstrikes, but I was not able to properly imagine it," Fares said.

"I used to ask myself 'how could they shelter in a school?' but now I see it with my own eyes."

At a gathering in Beirut to express solidarity for victims of the war, 18-year-old Laura al-Hajj wondered: "Why do I have so many concerns at my age?"

"We carried burdens that are much bigger than us, and beyond our age... I now just worry about being alive tomorrow."

Hajj said she feels like "from generation to generation, we are all living through wars".

"No child should have to go through what we went through."

Arab World

In ‘Solidarity’ Visit to Beirut, French FM Vows to Pursue Lebanon Truce Efforts

French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot during his visit to Prime Minister Nawaf Salam (AP)
French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot during his visit to Prime Minister Nawaf Salam (AP)
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In ‘Solidarity’ Visit to Beirut, French FM Vows to Pursue Lebanon Truce Efforts

French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot during his visit to Prime Minister Nawaf Salam (AP)
French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot during his visit to Prime Minister Nawaf Salam (AP)

French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot on Friday expressed solidarity with Lebanon and pledged to press ahead with diplomatic efforts to halt escalating violence between Israel and Hezbollah.

Barrot’s visit came as Lebanon faces mounting security and humanitarian problems resulting from ongoing hostilities.

Lebanese officials said the French minister stressed Paris’s determination to find “common ground” to launch serious negotiations, reaffirming full support for an initiative by President Joseph Aoun to open direct talks with Israel.

France “will continue its efforts despite the difficulties,” Barrot told Lebanese leaders, according to official sources.

He added that he had spoken ahead of his trip with his US counterpart as well as Israel’s Ron Dermer, who has been tasked with representing his government in any negotiations with Lebanon.

Barrot also underscored the “vital role” of UN peacekeepers in southern Lebanon, stressing that France intends to maintain its presence even after the current mandate of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) expires at the end of the year.

In a statement, Lebanon’s presidency said Barrot briefed Aoun on ongoing diplomatic contacts aimed at halting Israeli strikes.

The French minister voiced readiness to work towards ending the escalation through proposals under discussion with relevant parties, describing Aoun’s initiative as “courageous” and backed by the international community.

He also highlighted the central role of the Lebanese army in any future settlement, including in the event of a UNIFIL withdrawal, and discussed coordination with neighboring Syria following a recent call involving Aoun, French President Emmanuel Macron and Syrian leader Ahmad al-Sharaa.

Aoun, for his part, reiterated the urgent need for a ceasefire and guarantees to ensure its durability, warning that continued escalation was blocking the launch of negotiations.

He said a halt to hostilities was essential to create the conditions for talks, pointing to widespread destruction in southern Lebanon, hundreds of casualties and more than one million displaced.

“Once the fire stops, negotiations can take place anywhere,” Aoun said, according to the statement, stressing that de-escalation remains the priority.

He also reaffirmed Lebanon’s desire for international forces to remain in the south to oversee any future agreement, or for European contingents to continue peacekeeping duties under any framework.

On the domestic front, Aoun said the government remains committed to enforcing the state’s monopoly on arms, including plans to disarm Hezbollah, though implementation has been hindered by the ongoing conflict.

He added that key infrastructure — including Beirut’s airport, seaport and border crossings — remains under state control, with the army conducting patrols nationwide to curb armed activity. Decisions on war and peace, he stressed, rest solely with the state.

Lebanese divisions, US role

Barrot also met Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, who reiterated his refusal to name a Shiite representative to a negotiating delegation before “an end to Israeli aggression and the return of displaced persons.”

Prime Minister Nawaf Salam, for his part, told CNN Lebanon was ready to “immediately” enter direct negotiations with Israel.

“This war was imposed on us,” Salam said, noting that around 20 percent of the population has been displaced.

He described the United States as a strategic partner and said Donald Trump was “the most capable of playing a decisive role in ending the war.”

EU warns of ‘catastrophic’ situation

The European Union meanwhile voiced “grave concern” over the Israeli offensive in Lebanon, warning of severe humanitarian consequences and the risk of a prolonged conflict.

In a statement, the EU called on Israel to halt its operations, saying the humanitarian situation in Lebanon was already “catastrophic.”

It also criticized Hezbollah for drawing Lebanon into the conflict, refusing to disarm and continuing attacks on Israel.

Attacks on civilians, infrastructure, healthcare workers and UN peacekeepers are “unjustifiable and unacceptable and must stop immediately,” the statement said.

Arab World

Talks in Baghdad Aim to Halt Attacks on US Embassy

The US Embassy compound in Iraq inside the Green Zone in Baghdad (AFP) 
The US Embassy compound in Iraq inside the Green Zone in Baghdad (AFP) 
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Talks in Baghdad Aim to Halt Attacks on US Embassy

The US Embassy compound in Iraq inside the Green Zone in Baghdad (AFP) 
The US Embassy compound in Iraq inside the Green Zone in Baghdad (AFP) 

A series of meetings held over the past two days inside Baghdad’s fortified Green Zone have produced a preliminary framework aimed at halting attacks on the US Embassy, according to an informed Iraqi source.

Speaking to Asharq Al-Awsat, the source said the discussions brought together representatives of armed factions and a senior Iraqi political figure, resulting in a proposed agreement that has been conveyed to the United States. The proposal includes conditions set by Kataib Hezbollah.

The meetings were intended to “test the positions of both sides” as a step toward broader implementation if the arrangement proves successful in Baghdad, the source added. However, the outcome will depend on the nature of the US response.

Abu Mujahid al-Assaf, a newly appointed security official for Kataib Hezbollah, announced a five-day suspension of attacks on the US Embassy, conditional on several demands. These include an end to Israeli strikes and displacement in Beirut’s southern suburbs.

Additional conditions call for a US commitment not to target residential areas in Baghdad and other provinces, as well as the withdrawal of CIA personnel from the vicinity of the embassy.

The group warned that failure to meet these conditions would prompt a “direct and concentrated” response, with an escalation in attacks after the deadline. It also urged Iraqi authorities to protect diplomatic missions and economic entities of countries not involved in the conflict, excluding what it described as Israeli entities and US occupation forces.

The United States announced it is carrying out strikes against Iran-backed armed groups in Iraq. General Dan Caine, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, stated during a Pentagon briefing that US AH-64 Apache helicopters are being used in these operations.

Western sources told Asharq Al-Awsat that Washington is not engaged with such proposals and is likely to continue its current approach of responding to attacks targeting diplomatic facilities and US interests in Iraq.

Recent strikes, believed to have been conducted by the United States, targeted locations used by militia leaders for meetings. Kataib Hezbollah acknowledged in statements that several of its security leaders were killed in those attacks.

Meanwhile, French President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday urged Iraqi authorities to prevent attacks on diplomatic missions amid rising regional tensions.

Speaking on the sidelines of a European summit in Brussels, Macron said France has been present in Iraq since 2015 to combat ISIS and support the country’s sovereignty. He confirmed recent contacts with Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani and Kurdistan Region President Nechirvan Barzani, reaffirming France’s support for Iraq’s territorial integrity.

Macron called on Iraq to act decisively against groups targeting French nationals and facilities, warning that such actions undermine the country’s security and stability.

Baghdad Security Measures

Iraq’s Interior Ministry denied reports circulating on social media claiming that US forces had raided a unit of the Rapid Response Division at Baghdad International Airport.

Spokesperson Colonel Abbas al-Bahadli described the reports as “entirely false” and urged reliance on official sources, warning against the spread of misinformation.

Baghdad Operations Command confirmed that extensive security measures have been implemented across the capital. Lieutenant General Walid al-Tamimi said efforts include securing areas that could be used to launch indirect fire, assuring diplomatic missions that “the situation in Baghdad is stable and secure.”