ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq – Influential Iraqi Shiite cleric and head of the National Shiite Movement Muqtada al-Sadr on Wednesday announced the “complete separation” of his armed faction Saraya al-Salam from his party, and its “complete integration” within the Iraqi state’s forces.

“Based on the public interest of the nation, and to avoid the dangers threatening it, it has become incumbent upon us to announce the complete separation of the Saraya al-Salam from the national Shiite movement and their complete integration into the state and the general authority responsible for military formations,” Sadr wrote in a statement on Wednesday.

“The civilian entities affiliated with the Saraya will be transformed into a solid structure, without any headquarters, weapons, uniforms, addresses, or anything else.

The announcement comes weeks after Sadr expressed his willingness earlier in the month to hand over his faction to then-Prime Minister-designate Ali al-Zaidi’s government cabinet, saying that any other group that does not follow suit “should be considered outside the law.” 

“We are ready to dissolve the brigade formed years ago and hand over Saraya al-Salam to the commander-in-chief of the armed forces,” the National Shiite Movement leader said on May 8, urging all other factions to do the same “as quickly as possible.”

Zaidi’s cabinet was approved on May 14 in a parliamentary session attended by 270 lawmakers. The session saw Zaidi appointed as Iraq’s prime minister, and 14 ministers be confirmed in their role, while the ministers of defense, interior, culture, and others failed to be appointed.

The prominent Shiite figure also called on Zaidi at the time to “completely exclude” any politician affiliated to an armed group from his cabinet selection.

The Iraqi prime minister welcomed and commended the move shortly after its announcement, describing Sadr's initiative as a “national stance,” and an “important step toward consolidating internal stability.”

“In this context, we call upon all armed factions to follow the same responsible national path and operate under the umbrella of the state and its official institutions in order to guarantee the protection of Iraq,” Zaidi said in a statement.

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