Iraq's PM balances anti-corruption campaign against arms-control push

BAGHDAD, Iraq — Prime Minister Mohammed Shia' al-Sudani is navigating overlapping political and security challenges as his government works to consolidate weapons under state control and pursue corruption cases, Iraqi political observers and citizens said. Political analyst Iyad al-Fetlawi said al-Sudani's recent visit to Washington was received with a level of support not extended to any of his predecessors, but added that recent U.S. and Saudi airstrikes on positions of the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF, Hashd al-Shaabi) have complicated efforts to centralize arms, giving some armed groups a pretext to retain their weapons. A citizen, Ali Hussein, said the strikes have offered some factions a justification to keep their weapons while the government faces additional problems. Analyst Ali Jasim said public attention has shifted to the fallout from the airstrikes, reducing focus on corruption files and offering relief to some defendants. In the southern city of Najaf, Hawza student Sheikh Mohammed al-Haffaj said the anti-corruption campaign must continue and that all defendants should be referred to the judiciary. The government launched the first phase of the campaign, known publicly as "Operation Deterrence of Corruption," on June 28, moving against politicians, lawmakers and business figures through arrests and detentions. No further details on the next phase were immediately available.