Trump to Al-Zaidi: We Will Strike Iraqi Factions if They Support Iran

Informed sources revealed on Saturday details of the phone call held last Thursday between US President Donald Trump and Iraqi Prime Minister Ali Al-Zaidi, indicating that Washington threatened strong military strikes against armed factions and their leadership.

The sources told Shafaq News Agency that Trump informed Al-Zaidi during the call that the United States would target armed factions and their leaders if they decided to participate in any war that might resume in the coming period in support of Iran.

They added that the US president expressed Washington's readiness to provide various forms of support and assistance to Baghdad to advance the file of restricting weapons to the state, stressing the necessity of not retreating from this path or delaying its implementation.

According to the sources, Trump confirmed that any new retreat or procrastination in the weapon restriction file would push Washington to reassess the level of its support for Al-Zaidi and his government.

These positions come at a time when Washington is intensifying its messages to political forces and the Iraqi government regarding the file of restricting weapons to the state. Informed political sources told Shafaq News Agency last week that the Chargé d'Affaires of the US Embassy in Iraq, Stephen Vagn, delivered direct messages to governmental and political figures over the past days, confirming that Washington is monitoring steps to implement this file.

In a related context, a source familiar with the behind-the-scenes work of the Quartet Committee responsible for negotiating with the factions revealed days ago that Prime Minister Ali Al-Zaidi intervened in the negotiations by holding separate meetings with some leaders of groups refusing to hand over weapons.

The Coordination Framework had formed more than two months ago a tripartite committee that later became a quartet committee, aiming to contain the repercussions of the file of restricting weapons to the state. The committee has conducted a series of dialogues and discussions with the factions concerned with this file during the past period.

The project of restricting weapons to the state does not enjoy consensus among Iraqi factions, as the Nujaba Movement, Hezbollah Brigades, Sayyid al-Shuhada Brigades, along with other factions, announced their refusal to relinquish their military capabilities.