Iraq’s Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi has dismissed nine senior security officials following an investigation into oil smuggling in the Jurf al-Nasr area, a stronghold of the Iran-backed Kataib Hezbollah group. The probe uncovered illegal oil refineries and evidence of manipulation linked to smuggling activities, prompting al-Zaidi to refer all accused individuals to the judiciary. Among those dismissed were security and intelligence officers in Babil province, an Interior Ministry commander, and the director of the Oil Pipelines Company.
The move comes amid rising tensions between the prime minister and Kataib Hezbollah, which has issued sharp statements against al-Zaidi, accusing him of corruption. The group has been resistant to the government’s militia disarmament initiatives, and the crackdown appears aimed at cutting off its financial lifeline. According to reports, the smuggling operation was worth up to $30 million monthly, with oil being siphoned from strategic pipelines and sold on the black market.
Akeel Abbas, a senior fellow at the Atlantic Council, noted that oil smuggling by political factions and armed groups is common in Iraq, driven by commercial gains. He suggested that the prime minister framed the crackdown as an anti-corruption measure to gain public support. The investigation confirmed the accuracy of intelligence documents showing crude oil and oil-derivatives smuggling operations in the region.