ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq – Reports of Iraqi fighters assisting the Iranian government in suppressing nationwide protests are “misleading” and aim to destabilize Iraq, an advisor to the country’s prime minister stated on Friday, amid weeks of unrest in its neighbor. 

Citing a European military and Iraqi security source, CNN reported on Thursday that Iraqi militias have crossed the border into Iran to help the Islamic republic crush the deadly weeks-long nationwide protests, with nearly 5,000 fighters allegedly taking part in the crackdown. 

Iran has faced three weeks of nationwide protests, which began late last year at Tehran’s Grand Bazaar, where business owners and shopkeepers launched strikes and demonstrations over the falling value of the Iranian rial against the US dollar. The unrest later spread to other provinces, with chants increasingly targeting the state, prompting a harsh crackdown by authorities.

Hussein Allawi, security advisor to Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia’ al-Sudani, denied the reports of Iraqi fighters joining the suppression of Iran’s protests as “misleading.”

“These reports aim to drag Iraq into a dangerous situation and to deceive international and regional public opinion,” Allawi said in a statement. 

“The Iranian side has capabilities and does not need support from Iraq,” he stressed. 

Iran wields significant influence in Iraq and has a significant presence, particularly through funding and arming militia groups close to the Shiite rule in Tehran. These groups are facing significant pressure to disarm, with Washington pushing Baghdad to curb their presence.

The Islamic republic has a long history of labeling protesters as rioters and alleging ties to the US and Israel, responding with heavy crackdowns, arrests, and charges that carry the death penalty.

Nearly 2,700 protesters have been killed across Iran since the onset of the demonstrations, according to human rights monitors.