Iraq has imposed restrictions on representatives of Yemen’s Houthi group in Baghdad, banning them from political and media activities amid regional tensions and efforts to strengthen ties with Saudi Arabia, sources have told The New Arab (TNA).
Houthi leaders and officials in Iraq have been instructed not to conduct any media or political “activities” from Iraqi territory, an Iraqi official who requested anonymity told TNA.
A senior official in the office of Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi said the directive imposed a comprehensive ban on members of the group in Iraq holding meetings, organising press conferences and seminars, or moving outside the limits permitted under the country’s residency laws.
Since 2018, the Houthis have operated an office in Baghdad’s affluent Jadriya neighbourhood, known as the Representation Office of Ansar Allah. It is headed by Abu Idris al-Sharafi, a prominent Houthi representative with ties to Iraq dating back to 2016.
According to the Iraqi official, the government has designated residences for members of the Houthi representation and required them to provide advance information about their movements within Baghdad and other provinces.
The official added that the group’s members had been informed of the decision several days earlier.
The directive explicitly prohibits activities conducted from Iraqi territory against Saudi Arabia or other countries in the region, citing the principles of good neighbourliness and non-interference in the affairs of other states enshrined in the Iraqi constitution.
Houthi leaders have reportedly made several visits in recent months to political officials, as well as commanders from the Popular Mobilisation Forces (PMF) and other armed factions in Baghdad and several provinces. Iraq is home to numerous Iran-backed armed groups.
The Iraqi official said members of the Houthi group could no longer organise political or media activities relating to the ongoing war in Yemen.
The restrictions come about a week after al-Zaidi visited Saudi Arabia and met Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, holding talks on security, political and economic issues.
During the meeting, al-Zaidi assured the crown prince that Iraq would not allow its territory to be used to launch attacks against Saudi Arabia or other countries in the region, the Iraqi News Agency (INA) reported.
“Iraq’s firm position is not to allow its territory to be used as a launching pad for any attacks or actions that affect the security of the kingdom and the countries of the region, and to be keen on adhering to the principles of good neighbourliness and respecting the sovereignty of Iraq and brotherly and friendly countries,” al-Zaidi’s office said in a statement cited by INA.
During the Houthis’ lightning offensive in Yemen last month, Saudi Arabia’s East-West oil pipeline was struck by drones - forcing Riyadh to temporarily suspend operations along the export route, which Saudi Arabia uses as an alternative to the Strait of Hormuz.
Saudi Arabia said the drones originated in Iraq.
Baghdad conducted its own investigation and concluded that the strikes had been launched from Iraqi territory, although no group claimed responsibility.
Speaking to TNA, retired Iraqi Army Colonel Saad al-Jughaifi said the latest restrictions on Houthi representatives were consistent with international pressure to curb support for groups Washington describes as Iran’s regional proxies.
Al-Jughaifi also disclosed that measures introduced several months ago had restricted prominent members of Lebanon’s Hezbollah armed group and the Houthi movement from accessing Iraq’s financial transfer system, including banks, currency exchange and remittance companies.
He said restrictions had also affected their access to Iraqi Airways.
Al-Jughaifi added that the measures were intended to prevent Iraq from facing further financial, economic and political crises resulting from an adverse international classification.
He said that the Houthis had been hosted in Iraq under the government of Adel Abdul Mahdi in 2018, but their presence had since expanded in terms of personnel, headquarters and offices. Some members had also brought their families to live in Iraq.
Yemen’s civil war, in which Saudi Arabia has led a military coalition supporting the government since 2015, reignited in September following the collapse of a years-long truce.
The Houthis have tried to impose a naval blockade on Saudi Arabia, targeting its tankers and seizing large stretches of Yemen’s Red Sea coast, a key route for oil exports.
The conflict has also driven up energy prices, with the Houthis launching repeated missile attacks against the kingdom.
Saudi Arabia’s King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh has been targeted 20 times since the beginning of the month, with a recent attack killing 13 people and injuring more than 300.