Saudi Press

Saudi Arabia and the world
Friday, Aug 22, 2025

US threat to quit Iraq leaves its allies in the lurch

US threat to quit Iraq leaves its allies in the lurch

Mike Pompeo, Donald Trump’s secretary of state, last month threatened to withdraw the US embassy from Baghdad - unless Iraq’s government cracked down on attacks by powerful Iran-backed Shia paramilitaries on the diplomatic compound and US bases.
This threat led to speculation in Iraq and across the Middle East that the Trump administration was clearing the decks for a major attack on the Tehran-backed militias - thereby delivering a boost to the president’s re-election chances in November.

Be that as it may, the militia attacks are continuing and may anyway attract US air strikes against the militias contained within the umbrella group of the Popular Mobilisation Forces, or Hashd al-Shaabi. There have been dozens of these militia attacks, including on the airports at Baghdad and Erbil in Iraqi Kurdistan, on a British diplomatic convoy in the capital, and an American supply convoy from Kuwait.

These hits may well not be instigated by Iran. The Islamic Republic is reeling under US economic sanctions reimposed by Mr Trump. The US assassination of the top Iranian general Qassem Soleimani in January, along with Iraqi militia chieftain Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, also undoubtedly weakened Iran.

Paradoxically, however, it also removed the two people who could control the Shia militias, which are tens of thousands-strong and now appear to be off the leash.

Mr Pompeo’s threat is indicative of how the Trump administration’s erratic policies continue in Iraq and across the Middle East.

In this instance, it is diplomatically and strategically inept for the US to threaten to do just what Iran and its Arab proxies want it to do: withdraw from Iraq. Moreover, doing so would jeopardise the future of an already failing state, as Iraqi leaders have warned.

Even if the threat proves empty, Washington’s implied lack of commitment to Iraq is bad news for Mustafa al-Kadhimi, the Iraqi prime minister and former spy chief. A caretaker leader until next year’s elections, he is trying to bring the militias under army control and prevent Iraq becoming a battleground between the US and Iran.

Mr Kadhimi, who has qualified support from both sides, seemed to have steadied his wobbly position after meeting Mr Trump at the White House in August. Yet, last month - shortly before Mr Pompeo’s threat to withdraw the embassy - the administration said it was cutting the 5,000-plus US troops based in Iraq by roughly half.

Many, if not most, Iraqis want an end to political tutelage and military intrusion by both Americans and Iranians. Emblematic of this is Moqtada al-Sadr, a Shia cleric whose party unexpectedly came first in Iraq’s previous elections in 2018.

Reincarnated as an Iraqi nationalist in those 2018 elections, Mr Sadr allied his mass following in the Shia underclass with the Iraqi Communist party and secular civil society groups, and called for US and Iranian withdrawal.

Then, last autumn, popular anger in Iraq exploded in a civic uprising in the capital and across the Shia south. The outraged citizens of oil-rich Iraq have revolted before against a corrupt political elite unable to provide basic services such as electricity and water, let alone basic security against Sunni jihadi outrages and Shia militia lawlessness.

But this time they fought - with the loss of over 500 lives - in nationalist protest against Tehran and its henchmen turning their country into an Iranian protectorate.

Mr Kadhimi appears to understand and sympathise with the protesters, and their opposition to the spoils system known as muhasasa, the heart of a failing state based on the looting of resources rather than sharing of power. As they rev up their campaign once more against nearly two decades of political disaster, the prime minister offers some hope to Iraqis.

The US practically gifted Iraq to Iran by invading it in 2003, toppling a Sunni minority regime in a Shia majority country, and paving the way to an al-Qaeda insurgency. That was defeated but its residue fused with former Saddam Hussein loyalists into Isis, the jihadi blackshirts who took a third of the country in 2014.

The present Iraqi prime minister is struggling against this bleak legacy and now is not the moment to abandon him. Leaving Mr Kadhimi in the lurch guarantees a return to the pursuit of factional advantage instead of the public good, and of zero-sum sectarianism rather than power-sharing.

It will also reopen Iraq’s gates to a jihadi comeback in a country already struggling to stay alive. Iraqis deserve better.
Newsletter

Related Articles

Saudi Press
0:00
0:00
Close
Dogfights in the Skies: Airbus on Track to Overtake Boeing and Claim Aviation Supremacy
Tim Cook Promises an AI Revolution at Apple: "One of the Most Significant Technologies of Our Generation"
Are AI Data Centres the Infrastructure of the Future or the Next Crisis?
Miles Worth Billions: How Airlines Generate Huge Profits
Zelenskyy Returns to White House Flanked by European Allies as Trump Pressures Land-Swap Deal with Putin
Beijing is moving into gold and other assets, diversifying away from the dollar
Cristiano Ronaldo Makes Surprise Stop at New Hong Kong Museum
Zelenskyy to Visit Washington after Trump–Putin Summit Yields No Agreement
High-Stakes Trump-Putin Summit on Ukraine Underway in Alaska
Iranian Protection Offers Chinese Vehicle Shipments a Cost Advantage over Japanese and Korean Makers
Saudi Arabia accelerates renewables to curb domestic oil use
Cristiano Ronaldo and Georgina Rodríguez announce engagement
Asia-Pacific dominates world’s busiest flight routes, with South Korea’s Jeju–Seoul corridor leading global rankings
Private Welsh island with 19th-century fort listed for sale at over £3 million
Sam Altman challenges Elon Musk with plans for Neuralink rival
Australia to Recognize the State of Palestine at UN Assembly
The Collapse of the Programmer Dream: AI Experts Now the Real High-Earners
Armenia and Azerbaijan to Sign US-Brokered Framework Agreement for Nakhchivan Corridor
British Labour Government Utilizes Counter-Terrorism Tools for Social Media Monitoring Against Legitimate Critics
WhatsApp Deletes 6.8 Million Scam Accounts Amid Rising Global Fraud
Nine people have been hospitalized and dozens of salmonella cases have been reported after an outbreak of infections linked to certain brands of pistachios and pistachio-containing products, according to the Public Health Agency of Canada
Texas Residents Face Water Restrictions While AI Data Centers Consume Millions of Gallons
Tariffs, AI, and the Shifting U.S. Macro Landscape: Navigating a New Economic Regime
India Rejects U.S. Tariff Threat, Defends Russian Oil Purchases
United States Establishes Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and Digital Asset Stockpile
Thousands of Private ChatGPT Conversations Accidentally Indexed by Google
China Tightens Mineral Controls, Curtailing Critical Inputs for Western Defence Contractors
OpenAI’s Bold Bet: Teaching AI to Think, Not Just Chat
BP’s Largest Oil and Gas Find in 25 Years Uncovered Offshore Brazil
JPMorgan and Coinbase Unveil Partnership to Let Chase Cardholders Buy Crypto Directly
British Tourist Dies Following Hair Transplant in Turkey, Police Investigate
WhatsApp Users Targeted in New Scam Involving Account Takeovers
Trump Deploys Nuclear Submarines After Threats from Former Russian President Medvedev
Germany’s Economic Breakdown and the Return of Militarization: From Industrial Collapse to a New Offensive Strategy
IMF Upgrades Global Growth Forecast as Weaker Dollar Supports Outlook
Politics is a good business: Barack Obama’s Reported Net Worth Growth, 1990–2025
"Crazy Thing": OpenAI's Sam Altman Warns Of AI Voice Fraud Crisis In Banking
Japanese Prime Minister Vows to Stay After Coalition Loses Upper House Majority
President Trump Diagnosed with Chronic Venous Insufficiency After Leg Swelling
Man Dies After Being Pulled Into MRI Machine Due to Metal Chain in New York Clinic
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
"Can You Hit Moscow?" Trump Asked Zelensky To Make Putin "Feel The Pain"
Nvidia Becomes World’s First Four‑Trillion‑Dollar Company Amid AI Boom
Iranian President Reportedly Injured During Israeli Strike on Secret Facility
Kurdistan Workers Party Takes Symbolic Step Towards Peace in Northern Iraq
BRICS Expands Membership with Indonesia and Ten New Partner Countries
Elon Musk Founds a Party Following a Poll on X: "You Wanted It – You Got It!"
AI Raises Alarms Over Long-Term Job Security
Saudi Arabia Maintains Ties with Iran Despite Israel Conflict
Russia Formally Recognizes Taliban Government in Afghanistan
×