Iraq’s interior minister orders ‘full readiness’ and intensified intelligence operations

BAGHDAD — Interior Minister Abdul Amir al-Shammari directed security forces to maintain “full readiness” and intensify preemptive and intelligence operations Sunday, chairing a meeting of senior security leaders at the ministry’s operations command headquarters to review the impact of the regional war on Iraq.

Al-Shammari called for heightened coordination among security formations “to ensure rapid response to any emergency” and directed attention to logistical support for personnel in the field. The ministry said all security units had been briefed on plans to protect vital targets and enhance stability.

The directives come as Iraq continues to absorb the spillover of the regional war. Drone and rocket attacks have repeatedly struck diplomatic compounds, government facilities and military sites since hostilities began Feb. 28, including multiple strikes on the U.S. Embassy compound, the Iraqi National Intelligence Service headquarters and the Victory Base Complex near Baghdad International Airport. The country’s airspace has remained closed for more than three weeks, with the Civil Aviation Authority extending the suspension for the ninth consecutive time Sunday through noon Wednesday.