Key facts
- Iran's IRGC has established covert cells in Iraq to conduct attacks on Gulf neighbors.
- These cells consist of approximately 10 elite Iraqi Shi'ite fighters each.
- At least seven drone attacks targeting Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE were launched between April 20 and May 17.
- The new groups operate directly under IRGC command, bypassing established militia structures.
- This strategy aims to conserve resources and maintain plausible deniability for Iran.
- Iraq's Prime Minister discussed plans with a U.S. envoy to disarm all armed groups operating outside state control.
Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has established secretive new cells in Iraq to conduct drone attacks on Gulf countries that host American forces, bypassing established militia networks to avoid detection, eight Iraqi sources told Reuters. These cells, each comprising about 10 elite Iraqi Shi'ite Muslim fighters, have launched at least seven drone attacks from desert locations near Basra and Samawa against sites in Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates between April 20 and May 17.
The establishment of these new groups, which has not previously been reported, reflects a shift in IRGC tactics aimed at preserving Iran's ability to project force across the region at a time when its armed proxy groups are diminished and its own military and economic resources are depleted. Iraq hosts numerous militias with close ties to Tehran, forming a key part of Iran's regional "Axis of Resistance."
While groups under the banner of Islamic Resistance in Iraq have claimed responsibility for attacks against American assets, the new IRGC-controlled groups operate outside its command structure. This move may have been spurred by several powerful Shi'ite factions signaling a readiness to disarm and focus on domestic politics to avert conflict with the U.S. Two such factions, Asaib Ahl al-Haq and the Imam Ali Brigades, announced this month they would surrender their weapons to state authorities.
Experts suggest the newer groups are smaller, more ideologically hardened, and tightly controlled, reflecting Iran's need to conserve resources amid economic strain. The U.S. State Department reiterated its expectation that the Iraqi government take measures to dismantle Iran's destabilizing activities. Iraq's new Prime Minister, Ali al-Zaidi, discussed plans with U.S. envoy Tom Barrack to disarm all armed groups operating outside state control and ensure Iraqi territory is not used to threaten regional peace.
Attacks emanating from Iraq risk unraveling Baghdad's efforts to rebuild ties with Gulf neighbors. Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE summoned Iraq's envoys in April to protest the strikes. Iraqi authorities are investigating whether a May 17 drone attack on the Barakah Nuclear Power Plant was carried out by one of these new groups.