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Iran's Revolutionary Guards set up covert Iraqi cells to attack Gulf neighbors: Report
The cells reported to the IRGC and launched at least seven drone attacks, Iraqi sources said, as Baghdad faces renewed pressure to curb armed groups.
The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has established secretive new cells in Iraq to conduct drone strikes against Gulf nations, bypassing established militia networks to maintain operational deniability, according to eight Iraqi sources who spoke to Reuters.
Iran shifted tactics due to economic strain, relying on leaner, ideologically hardened cadres rather than mass-recruitment groups to preserve force projection, said militia expert Jasim al-Bahadli. The IRGC also sought to avoid US pressure on Baghdad to disarm groups.
Three or four cells, each comprising about 10 elite Iraqi Shi'ite fighters, launched at least seven drone attacks from desert locations near Basra and Samawa against sites in Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and the UAE between April 20 and May 17.
Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and the UAE summoned Iraqi envoys in April to protest the strikes, prompting Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi to condemn the acts and promise a joint inquiry to verify if Iraqi territory was used.
While the U.S. and Iran signed an interim agreement on Wednesday, it fails to address Tehran's support for "resistance groups," leaving Prime Minister Zaidi caught in a difficult balancing act between Washington and Tehran.