Iraq’s PM orders bill to bring all weapons under state control

BAGHDAD – Iraq’s Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi has ordered the drafting of a law to place weapons exclusively under state control, moving one of the country’s most sensitive security issues from political pledges towards a legislative process as a September deadline for action approaches.

Zaidi gave the instruction on Tuesday during a meeting in Baghdad with Khalid al-Obeidi, head of parliament’s Security and Defense Committee, according to a statement from the prime minister’s office carried by the Iraqi News Agency.

The move comes as Iraq’s main political forces face growing pressure to address the continued existence of armed groups operating outside the direct control of the state, including factions that are formally linked to the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) as well as others that maintain separate military structures.

The government’s decision to pursue legislation could provide a legal framework for regulating the relationship between the state and armed formations, rather than attempting to resolve the issue through unilateral security measures or a direct confrontation with powerful factions.

During the meeting, Zaidi said the most serious threat to the state was uncontrolled weapons because they undermined the authority of the law and weakened the standing of security institutions.

The meeting also examined security conditions in Iraq and efforts by the country’s various security forces to maintain stability and protect its borders and airspace amid rapidly changing regional tensions.

Zaidi stressed the importance of strengthening state sovereignty and the authority of constitutional institutions alongside improving the capabilities of the armed forces. He said security was a foundation for political and economic stability and that protecting Iraq and its people required military and security institutions capable of operating without parallel centres of power.

He also called for closer coordination between the executive and legislative branches to provide legal backing for government security plans and urged regular meetings with the parliamentary Security and Defense Committee to accelerate work on security, defence and related legislation.

Obeidi said his committee supported government measures through its legislative and oversight roles, stressing the need to strengthen Iraq’s security and military institutions, protect its borders, develop air-defence systems and raise the armed forces’ readiness in response to regional and international crises.

The legislative push comes as September 30 approaches, a date that has increasingly emerged as a political deadline for bringing weapons under the authority of the state.

The State Administration Coalition, which brings together major Shiite, Sunni and Kurdish political forces, said after a meeting on Aug. 5 that weapons must be confined to state institutions. It also warned that groups conducting activities that threaten Iraq’s security outside official institutions would be considered outside the law.

The coalition said any armed activity outside the framework of the state after Sept. 30 would be dealt with under Iraq’s counter-terrorism law.

The deadline has given the weapons issue greater urgency, but it has also highlighted the difficulty of enforcing it.

Some armed groups have shown a willingness to reorganise their military and security relationship with the state. Others, including Kataib Hezbollah, Harakat al-Nujaba and Kataib Sayyid al-Shuhada, have rejected giving up their military capabilities and have linked any discussion of their weapons to the departure of foreign forces and guarantees that Iraq can defend itself against external attacks.

The dispute has become particularly sensitive because the deadline coincides with arrangements surrounding the end of the international coalition’s military presence in Iraq.

Some Iran-aligned factions have used the issue of foreign troops to argue that their weapons cannot be discussed independently of the future of the foreign military presence. The government, however, has sought to frame the issue as one of national sovereignty and the exclusive authority of the state to decide on war and peace.

The government has already begun laying the institutional groundwork.

On June 3, Sabah al-Numan, spokesman for the commander-in-chief of the armed forces, announced the formation of a committee tasked with confining weapons to the state, confirming that it had begun its work.

Government spokesman Haider al-Aboudi said on Monday that discussions were continuing to overcome obstacles to placing weapons under state control.

“The state is proceeding with its monopoly on the use of force according to the established timeline by the end of September,” he said.

The issue has taken on additional urgency following a series of regional developments that have exposed the risks of armed groups acting independently of Baghdad.

Last week, tensions rose in Baghdad after armed factions threatened retaliation against Saudi Arabia following strikes on positions belonging to the Popular Mobilization Forces. The escalation was eased after Zaidi held an early-morning meeting with Badr Organisation leader Hadi al-Amiri, helping create space for diplomatic efforts.

Amiri later urged factions of the so-called Islamic Resistance to postpone any military response and put “Iraq’s supreme interest” first. At the same time, he called for a high level of readiness at a meeting with PMF commanders.

The episode illustrated the central dilemma confronting Baghdad. The government wants armed groups to defer to state institutions on matters of war and peace, while some factions continue to regard themselves as having an independent role in confronting external threats.

The government’s decision to prepare a weapons law therefore carries significance beyond the legal text itself. If passed and implemented, such legislation would seek to establish clearer rules governing which institutions can possess and deploy weapons, while potentially providing a legal basis for dealing with groups that refuse to comply.

But drafting the legislation may prove easier than securing political agreement over its enforcement.

The government will need to balance the authority of the law against the political influence and military capabilities of factions that have played a major role in Iraq’s security landscape since the war against Islamic State.

The presence of weapons outside direct state control has long been one of Iraq’s most difficult political questions. It touches not only on domestic security but also on relations with Iran, the United States and other regional powers, as well as Iraq’s ability to maintain a foreign policy independent of armed actors.

The issue also carries economic implications. Persistent uncertainty over who ultimately controls the use of force can undermine investor confidence and complicate the government’s efforts to strengthen state institutions and attract investment.

The government is consequently facing a dual test: producing a credible legal framework for a state monopoly on weapons while ensuring that implementation does not trigger an internal confrontation that could destabilise the country.

The September deadline may provide political momentum, but it also raises the stakes. The success of the process will depend less on the wording of the bill than on whether Iraq’s competing political and armed forces accept that the state, rather than individual factions, must ultimately control the use of force.

For Baghdad, the challenge is to turn the principle of state sovereignty into an enforceable reality without reopening the very instability it is seeking to prevent.