Shafaq News- Baghdad

Iraq's Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) reinstated Ali Jakhifa Lafta al-Shammari as commander of Samarra Operations, overturning an earlier decision to appoint Youssef Mizan Naseef Ragheef of Asaib Ahl al-Haq, a well-informed source told Shafaq News on Thursday.

Ragheef will remain commander of the 36th Brigade, while al-Shammari will oversee the disengagement and reorganization of brigades affiliated with Saraya al-Salam, the armed wing of the Patriotic Shiite Movement (PSM/Sadrist) led by Muqtada al-Sadr.

Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi, the source said, ordered the move to preserve security stability and prevent tensions in the area.

Faleh al-Fayyadh, head of the PMF —a predominantly Shiite umbrella formation integrated into Iraq’s state security structure in 2016— had previously appointed al-Shammari as an adviser to the General Directorate of Operations and tasked him with supervising the 313th, 314th, and 315th brigades operating under Samarra Operations.

The earlier decision sparked tensions in Samarra, which prompted Saraya al-Salam to deploy members at several locations across the city, maintaining that its presence would continue until security duties are fully transferred to state forces, although its leader, Muqtada al-Sadr, later instructed members to comply with the PMF's decision.

Longstanding rivalry persisted between Saraya al-Salam and Asaib Ahl al-Haq, whose leader, Qais al-Khazali, broke away from al-Sadr's movement and the Mahdi Army before founding the group. Their competition has periodically escalated into political disputes and armed clashes in several southern provinces, including Basra and Maysan.

Last month, al-Sadr and al-Khazali agreed on a roadmap to disengage their armed factions and encourage members to join official institutions as part of broader efforts to place weapons exclusively under state control, a key pillar of al-Zaidi's government program.

Read more: Iraq to place armed factions' weapons under state control