A mysterious explosion has struck an ammunition depot of the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) in Baghdad.
The PMF is an umbrella group of several Iranian-backed militias in Iraq. The Iraqi military and government are investigating the blast that took place on Saturday. Five members of the PMF were wounded in the explosion.
“The explosion of a cache of damaged ammunition inside one of [the PMF’s] headquarters east of the canal in the capital, Baghdad, has been brought under control ... The final toll of the incident resulted in minor injuries to five personnel,” the PMF said.
Iraq’s state media said that the PMF said on Saturday that “preliminary investigations into an explosion at one of its headquarters in eastern Baghdad indicate it was caused by an internal malfunction, with no evidence of an external attack.”
This indicates that Iraq is trying to downplay the idea that a munition struck this site because the Iraqi narrative is that this was an accident.
Explosion was the result of internal malfunction, not a targeted attack
A statement from the PMF, received by the state Iraqi News Agency (INA), noted that “preliminary investigations by the Ministry of Interior’s forensic evidence unit indicate that the explosion at one of the PMF’s headquarters was the result of an internal malfunction, and there is no indication of any external targeting.”
Iraq’s prime minister has ordered an investigation into the incident. The Iraqi Security Media Cell stated that “the Prime Minister and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, Ali Falih al-Zaidi, has directed the formation of an investigative committee to determine the circumstances of the explosion.”
The Iraqi Security Media Cell, an official government account, also said that the prime minister “emphasized the urgency of completing the investigation work to determine the precise causes of the incident, while taking all necessary safety measures and procedures to prevent the recurrence of such incidents in the future.”
Explosion viewed with suspicion in Iraq
Some will view the explosion as suspicious. This is because it is not the first of its kind. There have been explosions at arms depots in Iraq before. This has also happened in Syria. Is it all accidents, local people ask? They wonder whether something may be behind the explosions.
Iranian-backed militias have become a powerful force in Iraq over the last two decades, playing a role in the country’s security and politics.
Many of the groups, including Kataib Hezbollah, Asaib Ahl al-Haq, and the Badr Organization, have longstanding ties to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).
The Badr Organization was founded in Iran in the 1980s, while Kataib Hezbollah emerged around 2007, and Asaib Ahl al-Haq in 2006. These groups expanded their influence after the 2003 US invasion of Iraq, with some attacking American forces.
A turning point came in June 2014, when Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani issued a fatwa calling on Iraqis to defend the country against ISIS. The mobilization helped create the PMF, known as Hashd al-Shaabi.
Although the PMF includes numerous factions, Iranian-backed groups became the leaders within its ranks. The PMF was subsequently incorporated into Iraq’s official security structure. Many of the networks have been sanctioned by the US as terrorist groups. They increased their attacks on US forces in Iraq in 2019 and 2020.
In 2019, a series of explosions rocked PMF weapons depots across Iraq. The militias blamed some incidents on Israeli and American airstrikes.
The explosions highlighted concerns about militia stockpiles and Iranian weapons transfers. It was reported in 2018 and 2019 that Iran had moved ballistic missiles to the militias.
Following October 7, Iranian-backed factions launched numerous drone and rocket attacks against US forces in Iraq and Syria. Operating under the Islamic Resistance in Iraq umbrella, they also claimed attacks targeting Israel throughout 2023 and 2024.
The militias have remained a challenge for Baghdad. In 2026, Iraq’s prime minister pledged to bring weapons under state control.
Iraq later revised the September 30 disarmament deadline, with several powerful factions refusing to surrender their arsenals. Baghdad claims it will rein in the militias by June 2027.