ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq – Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi on Saturday dismissed several high-profile security officials in Babil province, including the local Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) chief, as well as interior and oil ministry officials, in connection with an oil smuggling case in Jurf al-Nasr.

On Wednesday, the premier formed an investigative committee for a major oil-derivative smuggling operation involving state-owned pipelines in the town, which is a stronghold for Kataib Hezbollah, a powerful pro-Iran armed faction.

Zaidi fired two Babil police chiefs, two intelligence directors, the province’s PMF commander, an energy brigade commander, and the director of the oil pipelines company in the Iraqi oil ministry, according to a statement from his office issued after he held an emergency meeting with the committee, which had confirmed the smuggling allegations.

He also “directed that all those accused of involvement in oil smuggling operations be referred to the judiciary,” the statement said.

Iraqi state media reported Thursday that Babil Governor Ali Turki al-Jamali had submitted his resignation, coming after he publicly denied the allegations of smuggling in the area.

Jamali is a member of the Sadiquon bloc, the political wing of the pro-Iran Asaib Ahl al-Haq armed group.

The investigation comes after the Iraqi National Intelligence Service recently published a report detailing a smuggling network in operation since 2021 in an area “under the responsibility of one of the armed factions.”

“The committee presented its report and the results of its investigations, confirming the accuracy of the information contained in the report of the Federal Intelligence and Investigations Agency regarding oil smuggling operations, the existence of oil refineries, and instances of manipulation in this case,” the statement said.

Although the report does not name the group hinted at, Jurf al-Nasr has been a stronghold for pro-Iran militias since the defeat of the Islamic State (ISIS) in the area, with Kataib Hezbollah being the most salient local actor.

Babil Provincial Council chief Asaad al-Muslmawi told state media that the committee had completed its “initial procedures” in Jurf al-Nasr and returned to Baghdad after beginning its work on Friday. He said it would resume work in the coming days to “complete the collection of information and prepare the necessary reports.”

The town, formerly known as Jurf al-Sakhar, is a predominantly Sunni enclave within Babil province with a complex yet strategic geography. The area connects Baghdad, Anbar, and the Shiite holy cities of Najaf and Karbala.

ISIS captured Jurf al-Sakhar in 2014, and the subdistrict was captured by Iraqi security forces and large Shiite formations of the PMF in October of the same year, in a campaign codenamed Operation Ashura. The town was then named Jurf al-Nasr, or the Cliff of Victory, to honor the victory over the jihadists.

In addition to the oil smuggling reports, Kataib Hezbollah has for years been accused of preventing the return of Jurf al-Nasr’s native Sunni population since 2014. A 2024 report by the UN’s International Organization for Migration (IOM) identified Kataib Hezbollah’s continued control of Jurf al-Nasr as the primary factor hindering returns.

Kataib Hezbollah is also among the three major Iran-backed armed groups that have refused repeated calls from Baghdad to disarm. Under the Iraqi government’s updated decision, all armed groups must complete the disarmament process by July 2027.