Shafaq News- Babil

Military reinforcements arrived near Jurf Al-Sakhr (Al-Nasr) in northern Babil province on Sunday evening, a security source told Shafaq News, as tensions escalated between the Iraqi government and Kataib Hezbollah, an Iran-aligned armed faction that holds sway in the area.

The source did not specify the number of personnel deployed or the units involved.

Earlier today, government spokesperson Haider Al-Aboudi said Prime Minister Ali Al-Zaidi, commander-in-chief of the armed forces, had decided to send official security forces into Jurf Al-Sakhr. Al-Aboudi said the government would carry out the decision soon.

Government and political sources told Shafaq News that Al-Zaidi had given Kataib Hezbollah a final deadline, expiring on November 20, to hand over security responsibility for the area to government forces. A Counter Terrorism Service (CTS) unit could be deployed to establish control if the faction fails to comply.