Nujaba threatens to target any US soldier left in Iraq after September 30

BAGHDAD — The head of Harakat al-Nujaba threatened to attack any American troops remaining in Iraq after Sept. 30, saying his group would enter a “decisive battle” if Washington does not complete a full withdrawal by land and air — a threat made 27 days before the coalition mission ends and a day after coalition aircraft shot down 10 drones over Erbil.

Akram al-Kaabi said Nujaba would not accept any continued U.S. presence after the date, even a reduced one, and that Iraq would not allow Washington a victory there after failing against Iran. He threatened lethal action against any American soldier who stayed.

The government says none will. Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi’s security adviser Qasim al-Araji said this week that the last American soldier would leave by the end of September with no extension, and the deputy head of the Security Media Cell said on Monday that Zaidi had rejected a request for part of the coalition to remain, without saying who made it. Government spokesperson Haider al-Aboudi said the withdrawal and handover of sites were proceeding as planned and called the date a sovereignty milestone.

Coalition forces intercepted 10 bomb-laden drones over Erbil governorate between 1:13 a.m. and 3:31 a.m. on Wednesday, the Kurdistan Region’s counter-terrorism directorate said, as direct U.S.-Iran hostilities resumed after weeks without exchanges.

Nujaba is one of three factions refusing to place weapons under state control while U.S. forces remain, alongside Kataib Hezbollah and Kataib Sayyid al-Shuhada. Araji said this week that Sept. 30 applies to the coalition withdrawal and marks the start of further talks rather than a deadline for surrendering weapons, and that the Popular Mobilization Forces Commission could be the body receiving them. The State Administration Coalition has said armed activity outside state authority after that date could be handled under the Anti-Terrorism Law.