Iraq has been trying to rein in some Iranian-backed militias, with Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi seeking to show that he can rein in chaos in the country.
Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi visited Iraq on Sunday, showing that Iraq is still a valuable partner to Tehran. The visit comes after US Secretary of State Marco Rubio spotlighted the threat of Iranian-backed militias in Iraq. According to Iranian media Mehr News, “Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said Saturday that the top Iranian diplomat Abbas Araghchi will visit neighboring Iraq on Sunday.”
The report says that Baghaei announced the visit on Saturday night, and the fact that it wasn’t announced earlier would appear to mean that Iran is either responding to something urgently or that they were concerned about revealing the visit, as usually these types of visits would be planned in advance. Iran’s foreign minister comes to Iraq as rumors swirl in Baghdad about a raid by security forces on the Green Zone. Rumors suggest Iraq is conducting an anti-corruption drive and has targeted some senior officials or politicians. It is not clear who has been targeted.
Some have suggested that Iraq may be targeting Sunni Arab parties, and others have suggested it could be Iranian-linked politicians. Iraq has been trying to rein in some Iranian-backed militias. Iraq’s new Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi is seeking to show that he can rein in the chaos in Iraq. Zaidi is also seeking to head to the US in July. Cracking down on Iranian-backed militias is an important aspect of the US pressure on Iraq.
The US wants Zaidi to disarm the militias. There are a dozen major militias in Iraq, and most of them are sanctioned by the US as terrorist groups. The Iranian government spokesman stated that during the visit, “Araghchi will discuss and consult with senior Iraqi officials about bilateral relations and regional and international developments.” (Ed note: IRGC Quds Force chief Esmail Qaani was just in Iraq on April 20th, 2026, and now FM Araghchi is on his way to Iraq also? What is this increased interest in "Assyria" which includes Iraq and Syria? Psalm 83:8.) ) (Read More)
