Shafaq News- Najaf

Sadr al-Din al-Qubbanji, senior leader in the Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq, warned on Friday of reports that a regional Arab coalition is being formed to carry out airstrikes against Iraqi armed factions and their bases inside Iraq, adding that if correct, these countries will "bear the consequences."

Al-Qubbanji, who is also Najaf’s imam, said during a religious sermon that international media outlets had reported the formation of a five-nation Arab coalition —comprising countries neighboring Iraq— to strike the leadership and military installations of Iraqi armed factions. "We hope this report is not accurate…we affirm that Iraq respects its neighbors and has no desire for a political crisis with them."

Read more: Ali Al-Zaidi's incomplete cabinet faces Iraqi armed factions test

The warning was issued days after a drone struck an electrical generator near the Barakah nuclear power plant in Abu Dhabi, with the UAE's Defense Ministry confirming that technical tracking showed all three drones involved in the May 17 attack originated from Iraqi territory. Saudi Arabia's Ministry of Defense separately reported that three drones entered Saudi airspace from the direction of Iraq on May 18. Baghdad said it detected no launches toward the two countries.

Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi ordered the formation of a high-level investigative committee during the opening session of the National Security Council's Ministerial Committee, renewing Iraq's condemnation of the attacks on both countries.

Following the February 28 US-Israeli military operation against Iran, Iran-aligned armed groups operating under the Islamic Resistance in Iraq (IRI) umbrella carried out drone and missile strikes against US-linked facilities in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq and Gulf states, including Bahrain, Jordan, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and Syria. Airstrikes attributed to unidentified actors have since struck PMF headquarters across multiple Iraqi provinces, including Diyala, Al-Anbar, and Al-Muthanna.