In the wake of the joint US-Israel February 28 attacks on Iran, Tehran has attempted to widen the war throughout the region. One of the countries that has become a key frontline is Iraq. There, the Iranians back a group of Shi’ite militias called Al-Hashd al-Sha’abi.
Hashd Sha’abi is also linked to the Iraqi state. Many of the militias are viewed as terrorist groups by the US.
There have been more than 700 attacks by the militias across Iraq since the start of the war, targeting the United States Embassy and US personnel in Baghdad, and kidnapping US freelance journalist Shelly Kittelson. Hashd Sha’abi is also concentrating on its attacks on the Kurdistan Region of Iraq.
Additionally, there are increasing concerns that the militias may send forces to Iran to bolster the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in Iran. Alternatively, they could be used by Iran to enforce order and carry out suppression in areas on Iran’s periphery.
For instance, it is believed that elements of Hashd Sha’abi could be deployed in the Kurdistan regions of western Iran.
Many of the militia groups have direct ties to Iran's IRGC
Why would the militias be able to operate in Iran effectively?
The videos alleging to show the Iraqis crossing into Iran, have shown convoys of vehicles, mostly pick-up trucks. These are mostly types of trucks that are hard to distinguish from civilian pick-up trucks. The trucks are adorned with flags and carry items in the back. How would aircraft monitoring the situation know whether these are civilians or members of militias?
This is where Hashd Sha’abi has always excelled. It is both a militia and a paramilitary group drawn from Shi’ite groups in Iraq. Its members are also officially members of the security forces in Iraq under the umbrella of a group called the Popular Mobilization Forces.
The PMF has dozens of brigades, and each brigade is a member of a militia. For instance, many brigades are staffed by members of groups such as Badr, Asaib Ahl al-Haq, Kataib Hezbollah, and Harakat Hezbollah al-Nujaba. This is how the Iraqi militias operate on both sides of the line of legality, both as official forces and as militias.
Many of the militia groups have direct ties to the IRGC. Kataib Hezbollah, for instance, is considered directly tied to its top levels.
Abu Mahdi al-Muhanids, the late leader of Kataib Hezbollah, served with the IRGC in the 1980s and was involved in bombing embassies in Kuwait. He was killed in 2000 alongside IRGC Quds Force head Qasem Soleimani in a US airstrike in Baghdad.
This shows how these groups have worked for the IRGC since the 1980s. Badr, another large militia led by former transport minister Hadi al-Amiri, has also been working with the IRGC since the 1980s during the Iran-Iraq war.
Not much is known regarding how many Iraqi militias may have crossed to Iran, or where they have gone. Most of it is rumors. It’s not the first time that Iraqi militias are alleged to have been moved to Iran to assist the regime. The Islamic Republic is alleged to have invited them to help put down protests in the past.
The militia movement to back Iran is part of the larger war effort of the groups in Iraq.
Iraq still has not chosen a new prime minister since the elections in November 2025. As such, the country is in a state of chaos, and the militias are exploiting this. There have been large protests by backers of Shi’ite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr against the US-Israeli attacks on Iran. “Iraq’s prominent Shiite cleric and politician Ammar al-Hakim on Saturday called for continuing Iraq’s government formation, despite the ongoing regional war, urging political blocs to fulfill constitutional obligations without postponement,” Rudaw media reported in Erbil.
Iran International published a week ago that “viewers who contacted Iran International said the arrival of Hashd al-Shaabi fighters in Abadan [Iran] had made the city feel ‘unsafe and frightening,’ and said residents were worried about their children.”
Meanwhile, in Iraq, Amiri is rumored to be in talks with the Shi’ite Coordination Framework parties bloc to enter into a temporary truce with the United States in Iraq.
In another development, Iran has said it will allow Iraq to export oil through the Strait of Hormuz. This will benefit Iraq, which has seen its exports decline in March to near zero. It’s possible that Iraq could offer some Hashd Sha’abi support for Iran in exchange for this oil deal.
In addition, an airstrike on a border crossing from Iraq to Iran may be linked to the movement of militias: Reuters reported on April 4 that “passenger movement has returned to normal at the Shalamcheh border crossing between Iraq and Iran after it was closed following air strikes on the Iranian side that killed an Iraqi citizen, security sources and state news agency said on Saturday.”