Kataib Hezbollah says it will expand its arsenal, not surrender it

BAGHDAD — Kataib Hezbollah said Monday it would keep and expand its weapons rather than hand them to the state, 58 days before the government’s deadline for bringing all arms under state control.

Secretary-General Abu Hussein al-Hamidawi said the group must “hold firmly to the weapons of the resistance and not relinquish them, but rather to develop them and expand their arsenal,” describing this as necessary to deter future attacks. He called for “cleansing our security environment,” strict compliance with secrecy requirements, and coordination between the group’s military and media activities. He accused the United States and Saudi Arabia of involvement in an attack on the group’s members, without giving details, and praised security forces, Popular Mobilization Forces members and organizers securing roads for Arbaeen pilgrims in Karbala.

U.S. and Saudi aircraft struck PMF sites across seven governorates on Wednesday, in strikes the force said killed at least 20 of its members and wounded 32.

Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi has set Sept. 30, when the U.S.-led coalition mission ends, as the date for bringing all weapons under state control, and said in July that factions surrendering their weapons could become political and civil entities. The initiative gained momentum in early June after the Coordination Framework endorsed restricting arms to state institutions and authorized Zaidi to implement it. A military committee was formed to register personnel, inventory weapons and equipment, transfer military sites and integrate participating formations into official structures, with heavy weapons including tanks, artillery, missiles and drones designated for transfer to state storage. Saraya al-Salam, Asaib Ahl al-Haq and the Imam Ali Battalions moved to join.

Kataib Hezbollah, Harakat al-Nujaba and Kataib Sayyid al-Shuhada have rejected the process.