TOP 10 IRAQ WAR DEVELOPMENTS — PAST 24 HOURS
Date: September 28, 2026
The dominant thread right now is the convergence of three crises hitting simultaneously: the September 30 deadline for U.S./coalition forces to complete their withdrawal, Baghdad’s parallel push to assert a state monopoly on weapons over Iran-backed militias, and a U.S. sanctions dispute over Iranian civilian flights into Najaf that has triggered militia threats and street protests. ISIS remnant activity continues at a lower but steady tempo in Kirkuk and Sulaimani.
- KATAIB HEZBOLLAH THREATENS TO TOPPLE AL-ZAIDI GOVERNMENT
- Senior Kataib Hezbollah security official Abu Mujahid Al-Asafi warned Baghdad will be “brought down by all means” if it doesn’t act in “the interests of the people”
- Threatened to close border crossings with sanctioning countries and to have the “Islamic Resistance” monitor Iraqi airspace and shoot down “hostile aircraft” if the Iran flight “air blockade” continues past October 1
- Demanded Iraq mark September 30 as the date U.S./NATO forces are “expelled”
Source: Hatha Alyoum (via Shafaq News) — https://en.hathalyoum.net/articles/298904
- U.S. FORCES SET TO COMPLETE IRAQ WITHDRAWAL SEPTEMBER 30
- Under the September 2024 agreement, U.S. forces formally end their military mission in Iraq on Sept. 30, closing out more than two decades of presence
- A small residual force will remain solely for anti-ISIS operations
- Shifts the bilateral relationship from security cooperation toward broader economic/geopolitical engagement
Source: The Soufan Center — https://thesoufancenter.org/intelbrief-2026-september-28/ ; NPR (WJCT) — https://news.wjct.org/2026-09-27/after-more-than-two-decades-u-s-forces-prepare-to-leave-iraq
- PM AL-ZAIDI PUSHES MILITIA DISARMAMENT DEADLINE TO JUNE 2027
- PM Ali al-Zaidi delayed the original Sept. 30 weapons-handover deadline to June 30, 2027, seeking to balance U.S. pressure against domestic Shia-militia resistance
- Several Iran-aligned factions remain armed and resistant, a direct test of Baghdad’s sovereignty claims
- Plan reportedly begins with a 90-day initial phase before factions surrender weapons
Source: The Soufan Center — https://thesoufancenter.org/intelbrief-2026-september-28/
- TOP IRAQI LEADERS BACK NAJAF SANCTIONS EXEMPTION AND STATE WEAPONS MONOPOLY
- President Nizar Amedi, PM Ali al-Zaidi, Speaker Haibet al-Halbousi and Supreme Judicial Council head Faiq Zidan jointly backed exempting Najaf airport from U.S. Treasury sanctions on Iranian carriers
- Same meeting affirmed that “decisions on war and peace must remain with the state” and that arms should be held only by state institutions
Source: Hatha Alyoum (via Shafaq News) — https://en.hathalyoum.net/articles/298881
- U.S. REPORTEDLY TO GRANT SANCTIONS WAIVER FOR IRAN-NAJAF FLIGHTS
- U.S. sanctions on Iranian carriers took effect Sept. 23, prompting Najaf and three other Iraqi airports to suspend Iranian flights over secondary-sanctions fears
- Iraqi Airways resumed some Najaf-Iran flights by routing around the contractor standoff; a formal U.S. waiver is reportedly imminent
- Iran has filed protests with ICAO and the International Court of Justice; ICAO reportedly ruled in Iran’s favor
Source: Al Jazeera — https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/9/28/flights-between-iraqs-najaf-and-iran-resumed-as-tehran-protests-us-curbs
- NATIONWIDE PROTESTS AND SIT-IN THREATS OVER IRAN FLIGHT SUSPENSION
- Harakat Hezbollah al-Nujaba political bureau chief Sheikh Ali al-Asadi blamed “Washington’s bullying” for the flight suspension and warned of “popular movements” if Baghdad doesn’t reverse course
- Iraqi resistance factions vowed airport sit-ins; rallies have already spread to Najaf and other cities
- Iraq’s ambassador said ground-handling firms’ fear of Treasury sanctions — not an official Baghdad decision — caused the halt
Source: Press TV — https://www.presstv.co.uk/Detail/2026/09/28/777199/Harakat-Hezbollah-al-Nujaba-urges-Baghdad-to-reconsider-suspension-of-Iranian-flight-operations
- WASHINGTON LIFTS OBJECTION TO IRAQI DEPUTY PM NOMINEE
- MP Abu Turab al-Tamimi says the U.S. dropped its veto of a previously blocked deputy PM candidate after PM al-Zaidi’s Washington visit and “unspecified guarantees”
- Nominee’s identity and the guarantees given remain undisclosed
- Remaining cabinet vacancies expected to be settled after the Sept. 30 troop withdrawal
Source: Hatha Alyoum (via Shafaq News) — https://en.hathalyoum.net/articles/298668
- KURDISH TEEN KILLED IN CTS RAID ON ISIS CELL, KIRKUK PROVINCE
- Iraqi Counter Terrorism Service (CTS) raid in Prde, Kirkuk province targeted three suspected ISIS militants Sunday, killing two (one detonated a suicide belt) and capturing one
- 14-year-old Kurdish civilian Murad Zana was killed during the operation; two CTS members were also wounded
- Local officials say they received no advance notice of the raid; the family is demanding answers
Source: Rudaw — https://www.rudaw.net/english/categories/iraq/1079488
- IRAQI COUNTERTERRORISM ARRESTS THREE ISIS SUSPECTS IN SULAIMANI
- CTS said it arrested three suspected ISIS members in Sulaimani province hours after the Kirkuk clashes
- Two suspects had reportedly entered the province Sunday; the third was a local resident
- Follows a pattern of steady low-level ISIS-cell activity along the Kirkuk-Sulaimani corridor
Source: Hatha Alyoum (via Shafaq News) — https://en.hathalyoum.net/articles/298757
- KURDISTAN REGION FACES AIR-DEFENSE GAP AFTER U.S. DEPARTURE
- U.S. air defenses in Iraq had intercepted roughly 95% of Iranian drone/missile attacks aimed at the region
- With that cover ending, the Kurdistan Regional Government becomes more dependent on Baghdad for protection while managing friction with the federal government, Turkey and Iran
- Seen as one of the biggest strategic risks flowing directly from the Sept. 30 withdrawal
Source: The Soufan Center — https://thesoufancenter.org/intelbrief-2026-september-28/
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