Eurasia Press & News
Following an investigation into a deadly clash at the Iraqi Ministry of Agriculture, the spokesman for Prime Minister Mohammad Shia al Sudani issued a statement detailing ramifications for the perpetrators, including Kataib Hezbollah (KH).
KH, a US-designated Foreign Terrorist Organization, is an Iraqi Shiite militia that is supported by Iran. It is part of the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF), a conglomerate of militias, many of which are backed by Iran, that is an official Iraqi security institution.
On July 27, members of KH stormed the Ministry of Agriculture in Baghdad to prevent the swearing-in of a new governorate director in the ministry. According to the Prime Minister’s Office, the previous director was corrupt and under the protection of KH. After the militia’s members entered the offices, the police were called, which led to a gunfight. One police officer was killed, and at least nine people were injured. Fourteen individuals were arrested and identified as part of the 45th and 46th Brigades of the PMF, units which KH controls.
The initial statement released by KH claimed that the incident was a mistake. It stated that security personnel and relatives of the ousted director were defending him when a police officer “took a hasty and unjustified action, opening fire on the security personnel of the dismissed director.”
The KH statement then provided a confusing recounting of events in which individuals ostensibly sought help from nearby relatives who came “to assist the injured and secure their exit.” When these PMF members returned to their base, the statement claims, insisting they were members of multiple brigades, Iraqi security forces allegedly followed them, opened fire, and arrested various PMF affiliates, including some who weren’t involved in the Ministry of Agriculture incident. KH stated “that it was not a party to the clash” and denounced the allegations against it.
However, the US Embassy in Baghdad placed the blame squarely on the shoulders of KH. “We offer our condolences to the families of the victims who were killed by Kata’ib Hizballah, a U.S.-designated terrorist organization within the Popular Mobilization Forces, on July 27 at a Ministry of Agriculture department in Baghdad,” the embassy posted on X.
Following the incident, PM Sudani launched an investigation that shared its conclusions on August 9. The investigators accused the perpetrators of being members of KH and the PMF, also stating that “the aforementioned force moved without orders or approvals, contrary to established military protocols, and used weapons against members of the security forces.” The report also reaffirmed the corruption of the official who had been ousted as governorate director and noted “a flaw in the command-and-control system with the Popular Mobilization Forces.”
The investigators recommended referring those involved to the judiciary, dismissing some KH-affiliated PMF commanders, and conducting an investigation into a PMF commander in charge of these brigades.
In response, a KH statement said, “What the official spokesperson for the commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces [Sudani] announced regarding the results of the government investigation was not free from distortion and exaggeration in the exploitation of authority.” The group stated that the conclusion of Sudani’s investigation “satisfies only America and its lackeys in the region” and called for the departure of US forces by September 2025. US personnel are currently scheduled to remain in Iraq through September 2026 for counterterrorism purposes.
Sudani’s decision to condemn KH and the PMF at this time is notable. KH and PMF leaders are part of the Coordination Framework (CF), the Shiite governing coalition that Sudani nominally leads as prime minister. Many members of both the CF and the PMF are backed by Iran, which is attempting to ensure unity within its ranks of affiliates in Iraq.
In addition, the Iraqi parliament is considering legislation that would enshrine the PMF as an independent force in Iraq, strengthening and solidifying Iran’s influence. This legislation is facing pushback within Iraq and the CF, which otherwise largely supports the PMF, while Iraq’s leaders are under pressure from the US not to pass it.
