ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq – The disarmament of armed groups in Iraq is an “important step” but requires practicality and genuine will, an official from influential Iraqi cleric Muqtada al-Sadr’s movement told The New Region on Sunday, with Washington pressuring Baghdad to dissolve all armed factions.

Faiq Zidan, President of Iraq’s Supreme Judicial Council, on Saturday announced that the leaders of some armed factions have adhered to his advice on cooperation “to enforce the rule of law, confine weapons to the state, and transition to political action now that the national need for military action has ceased.”

“The announcement by some armed factions to hand over weapons and move towards political action is an important step if it is accompanied by a genuine will and practical commitment,” an official from Sadr’s National Shiite Movement said, requesting anonymity.

The United States is mounting pressure on the Iraqi government to limit the expanding role of Iran-backed Shiite armed groups in the country. Washington is reportedly pushing Baghdad to dissolve all armed factions, including the state-integrated Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF).

“The Sadrist movement was and still is among the first to call for limiting weapons to the state and building a strong state with full sovereignty,” the official said, stressing that the process must be “sincere and responsible that puts the supreme interests of Iraq above any factional and partisan consideration.”

He further criticized rogue weapons as a factor of instability, lamenting that they weaken Iraq’s institutions and incite chaos.

“Real political action can only succeed in a safe environment, in which disputes are managed through the constitution, the law, and the ballot boxes,” the official stated.

In January 2025, Sadr commemorated the 104th anniversary of the founding of the Iraqi Army, while calling for restricting arms to the state and controlling “rogue” groups.

Sadr himself has founded multiple armed factions operating outside of state control, including the Jaish al-Mahdi (Mahdi Army) which was founded in 2003 to confront the US invasion of Iraq and disbanded in 2008. The group was partially revived under the name Saraya al-Salam in 2014, which Sadr continues to lead to this day.

Kataib Hezbollah and Harakat al-Nujaba, two US-designated Iran-backed Iraqi militias, rebuffed the disarmament calls on Saturday, saying they maintain the right to “resistance” as long as there are foreign forces present in the country.

In late November, US Special Envoy to Iraq Mark Savaya highlighted the need for the Iraqi government to bring weapons under state control and ensure state institutions are protected.

Illegal weapons in Iraq stand out as one of the most pressing challenges to security and stability. Unofficial data puts the number of arms within the Iraqi society at around 15 million medium and light weapons, with armed groups and tribes possessing the bulk of them.