Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi sent four military brigades to Basra on Saturday after the government received information that Iran-aligned factions were planning to attack Kuwait from the province, Iraqi security and political sources told MBN on Monday.
Baghdad has not announced the reinforcements. But the Iraqi army’s chief of staff, Gen. Abdul Amir Yarallah, arrived in Basra on Sunday and met with the province’s governor, Asaad al-Eidani, and security officials.
The provincial council said the visit focused on securing the border area, preventing potential breaches and strengthening coordination among security and military commanders.
A security source, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media, said unidentified factions had planned to launch drones from Basra toward Kuwait and carry out ground attacks along the border if war with Iran broke out anew.
Information about the alleged attack plot reached Baghdad from a Gulf state, according to an Iraqi political source who is in contact with Baghdad’s ambassador to one of the Gulf Cooperation Council countries.
MBN was unable to independently verify the information. Basra is Iraq’s principal port and its province directly abuts Kuwait.
A source in the ruling Shiite Coordination Framework said the Iraqi intelligence service, the Iraqi army and Gulf states were currently coordinating to prevent attacks on Gulf countries originating from Iraq.
Saad Harbiya, the army’s deputy chief of staff, told reporters on Sunday that “the region is experiencing tensions and conflicts, but our units stationed in Basra are carrying out their duties.”
He added that the Iraqi army chief of staff’s visit was “part of the redeployment of forces.”
This is not the first time Basra has been identified as a potential launch point for attacks against Kuwait.
Since the outbreak of war between the United States and Israel on one side and Iran on the other on Feb. 28, border areas in the province have been used to launch drones and missiles, some of which targeted U.S. forces stationed in Kuwait.
In March, a group calling itself Saraya Awliya al-Dam, or the Guardians of Blood Brigades, claimed responsibility for a drone attack on targets inside Kuwait. Kuwaiti officials said at the time that the attack caused no casualties.
In April, Iraqi security forces foiled an attempt to launch rockets from the Zubair area of Basra. That same month, protesters stormed the Kuwaiti Consulate in the city and lowered its flag.
During the war, Gulf countries urged Baghdad to take measures to halt attacks launched from Iraqi territory against neighboring states. Gulf countries fear they could come under renewed attack from Iran-aligned Iraqi factions, which Washington designates as terrorist organizations, particularly amid reported plans for new U.S. strikes against Iran after the U.S. midterm elections.
Many armed factions operating in Iraq maintain close ties with Tehran. Some of those groups have claimed responsibility for dozens of drone and missile attacks targeting U.S. interests in Iraq and across the region since the war began.
Since taking office as prime minister in May, Zaidi has pledged to disarm these factions and bring all weapons under state control, in response to demands from the administration of President Donald Trump.
Last week, Iraqi National Security Adviser Qasim al-Aboudi said on the sidelines of the Manama Dialogue that Iraq would remain neutral if war between the United States and Iran resumed and would prevent any threats against Gulf countries originating from its territory.
He also said the government was committed to bringing all factional weapons under state control by June 2027 and was working to resolve its disputes with Kuwait. Zaidi had originally set a “final and non-negotiable” deadline of Sept. 30 for completing that action before extending it in mid-September under pressure from some of the armed factions.
Relations between Baghdad and Kuwait have been strained since Iraq submitted coordinates for its maritime borders in February.
Kuwait protested, saying the coordinates included Kuwaiti waters. Iraqi sources previously told MBN that Zaidi planned to visit Kuwait and Bahrain in the coming days and would discuss strengthening security along the shared border with Kuwait.
Adapted and translated from the original Arabic.
