Report: Iraq Bars Political Activity by Assad Officers in Iraq

Iraqi officials said Baghdad is tightening restrictions on Syrian officers who fled to Iraq before the “Deterrence of Aggression” battle that toppled Assad’s rule, and is barring them from engaging in any political or media activity.

Al-Araby al-Jadeed reported on Tuesday, April 21, citing six Iraqi officials whose names and positions were not disclosed, that they gave matching accounts confirming a directive from the government of Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani banning any political or media activities by officers and regime members staying in Camp Taji, where the fleeing officers are being housed.

According to the report, the measure includes limiting the officers’ access to Facebook and X, and informing them not to record videos with political content, comment on events, or explain their situation inside the camp where they are staying.

The government has allowed them only to communicate with their families in Syria.

According to Al-Araby al-Jadeed, one former regime officer from the Fourth Division, formerly led by Maher al-Assad, brother of ousted president Bashar al-Assad, attempted suicide several weeks ago by taking a large quantity of medication for high blood pressure. He was transferred to a private medical center and recovered after urgent intervention.

Escape During “Deterrence of Aggression”

The “Deterrence of Aggression” battle began in late November 2024 and ended with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad fleeing at dawn on December 8 of the same year.

During that period, many officers and members of the former regime fled to Iraq, especially those based in Deir Ezzor (eastern Syria), near the Syrian-Iraqi border, particularly in the final two days of the battle.

While about 1,900 members, including low-ranking officers, returned under a settlement with the new Syrian administration, around 130 officers, including major generals and brigadier generals, remained in Iraq, according to Iraqi government statements.

The officers are staying at the Military Training School inside Camp Taji, 25 kilometers north of Baghdad, in a residential compound containing dozens of rooms previously prepared for Iraqi soldiers and military personnel training at the camp.

According to the report, their attempts to obtain visas to travel to Russia or another country have stalled, especially after they failed to secure new Syrian passports.

Attempted “Coup”

The Turkish newspaper Turkiye reported on February 11, 2025, that a meeting took place in the Iraqi city of Najaf between generals from Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and officers from the former regime army to plan a coup against the government in Damascus.

The newspaper said the meeting was held in a villa belonging to an Iraqi man from Najaf and was attended by Iranian commanders led by General Hossein Akbari, the former IRGC commander who was Iran’s last ambassador to Damascus.

Amir Ali Hajizadeh, one of the IRGC commanders and a special intelligence operations officer in Tehran, also attended the meeting.

From the former regime leadership, those present included Major General Asaad al-Ali, Major General Mohammed Khallouf, Brigadier General Adel Sarhan, Brigadier General Abdullah Manaf al-Hassan, and Brigadier General Mohammed Sarmini, according to the newspaper.

For its part, the Iraqi government denied the presence of military activities by Syrian fighters in Iraq aimed at striking the Syrian authorities.

Forces Oppose Handing Them Over

Al-Araby al-Jadeed said political forces within the Coordination Framework, which governs Iraq, oppose handing them over to Damascus as individuals wanted for crimes against humanity, according to the same sources, which ruled out their transfer for the time being, despite the fact that they have not been granted refugee status so far.

According to one source, some Iraqi faction and party leaders believe they should be protected from possible retaliation by the new Syrian government, especially as some of them are close to the Assad family, while others are wanted on charges of committing crimes against humanity during the years of the Syrian revolution.

Despite the wishes of those Iraqi currents and factions, one source said the final decision regarding their fate rests with the Iraqi government.

According to one source, recent developments with Damascus, especially after an agreement to export shipments of Iraqi crude oil and security understandings related to the border and intelligence sharing, have pushed Baghdad away from any desire to keep former Assad officers as a bargaining card.

The source added that the Iraqi government now deals with them from a humanitarian perspective, as some are in their mid-50s and require medical care.

At the same time, it does not want any tension in its relationship with Syria at present because of the support transitional Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa receives from his US counterpart Donald Trump.

One of the officials quoted by the website said these military men no longer hold political importance for Iraq, and that the government in Damascus is not interested in them either. He said the Iraqi authorities’ position is to end support for those officers, contrary to what influential faction and party leaders want.

The Course of Syrian-Iraqi Relations

Relations between Syria and Iraq have been uneven since the first moments after the regime’s fall, although Arab efforts have smoothed some of that unevenness.

Although military factions, particularly the Popular Mobilization Forces, had a prominent military presence in the conflict in Syria alongside the former regime, Iraqi officials moved quickly to meet the new Syrian administration.

The first visit between the two sides was made by Iraqi intelligence chief Hamid al-Shatri, who met al-Sharaa in Damascus on December 26, 2024, days after the regime fell.

The highest-level meeting, meanwhile, was between al-Sharaa and Iraqi Prime Minister al-Sudani, sponsored by Qatari Emir Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani and held in the Qatari capital, Doha.

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