Iraqi Interior Minister Calls Citizens to Refrain from Acquiring Heavy Weaponry, Announces First Phase of Weapon Registration Campaign

Shafaq News/ Interior Minister Abdul-Amir al-Shammari on Thursday called on Iraqi citizens to refrain from acquiring medium and heavy weapons to avoid severe legal consequences.

Al-Shammari's remarks came during a meeting of the National Permanent Committee for Regulating and Limiting Weapons he chaired at the Joint Operations Command headquarters to discuss the preparations for first phase of registering citizens' weapons.

The meeting was attended by the Deputy Commander of Joint Operations, the Ministry's Undersecretary for Police Affairs, governors, police commanders, and several officers and relevant authorities.

An official statement by the ministry said the meeting discussed the strategic short, medium, and long term plans for controlling weapons within the state's jurisdiction.

The attendees also discussed possible measures to support the state's efforts to limit weapons, including legal, administrative, and media aspects, attaching importance to continuing search and seizure operations throughout the country.

The Interior Minister urged citizens to avoid acquiring medium and heavy weapons, as doing so would expose them to severe legal accountability.

He called on them to register their light weapons at police stations with a database for this purpose to avoid legal penalties and weapon confiscation.