BAGHDAD - Iraqi Shiite cleric and popular leader Muqtada al Sadr announced the dissolution of his militia, Saraya al Salam, and its full integration into the Iraqi state, a move that directly challenges the network of Iran-backed armed factions that operate under the umbrella of Iraq’s Popular Mobilization Forces.
“It has become necessary for us to announce the dissolution of Saraya al-Salam from the Shia National Movement- a complete dissolution- and their full attachment to the state and the general authority over military formations,” Sadr stated in his announcement on May 27. A document from his office said the handover process would be completed by Eid al Ghadir on June 4, with a joint committee of government and Sadr movement representatives beginning work on May 29.
The announcement hands Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al Zaidi, whose government took office on May 14, a political opening on the central challenge of his tenure: disarming militias, particularly those backed by Tehran. “We affirm that this initiative represents an important step toward strengthening internal stability, enshrining the principle of confining weapons to the state’s hands, and supporting the security agencies in carrying out their national and constitutional duties,” Zaidi said. He called for “all armed factions to follow the same responsible national path and work under the umbrella of the state and its official institutions.”
Sadr formed Saraya al Salam in 2014 in response to the Islamic State’s offensive in Iraq, drawing largely from his earlier Mahdi Army militia. His Shiite National Movement, formed in 2024, is his latest political organization. While Sadr has been a partner of Tehran, he has resisted Iraq’s complete subjugation to its neighbor — a position that has irritated the Iranian regime and its Iraqi proxies. Saraya al Salam was involved in violent clashes between Shiite factions following the 2021 parliamentary elections, in which Sadr won the most seats but was ultimately unable to form a government and withdrew his party from parliament.
Sadr pressed other armed groups to follow his lead. “I also hope that all formations of [the Popular Mobilization Forces] will separate from partisan and sectarian orders, especially after the factions hand over their weapons to the state, as we advised them years ago,” he said. The response from Iran-backed factions has been split. Kataib Sayyid al Shuhada, an Iran-backed militia and U.S.-designated Foreign Terrorist Organization, rejected the idea of disarmament. Asaib Ahl al Haq, also a U.S.-designated terrorist group with a major political party, said it supports state control of weapons. Both groups were involved in attacks by Iran-backed militias on the U.S. presence in Iraq, including the embassy in Baghdad, during the recent conflict with Iran.
The Popular Mobilization Forces, an official Iraqi security institution comprising a network of militias — the most powerful backed by Tehran — claim to be part of the Iraqi state security apparatus and thus entitled to possess weapons. In practice, the militias frequently launch attacks outside of directives of the Iraqi commander-in-chief and the prime minister, and some overtly say they answer to Iran. Tehran’s partners have sought to satisfy the requirement for state control of weapons by strengthening the PMF, enabling them to continue acting as Iran’s proxies under a veneer of legitimacy.
The joint committee overseeing the Saraya al Salam handover faces a June 4 deadline to complete the integration process, a timeline that will test whether Zaidi’s government can translate Sadr’s gesture into a broader precedent for militia disarmament.