ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Nearly 5,000 volunteers in Iraq’s Diyala province have signed a pledge to serve as a reserve force to support Iran-backed armed groups in Iraq and the Islamic Republic of Iran, amid heightened regional tensions and growing fears of a potential US strike against Tehran.
A total of 4,947 volunteers officially announced their readiness in a statement issued on Friday. All of the volunteers are from Diyala province.
“We announce our readiness to volunteer to support our security forces, the Popular Mobilization Forces, and the Islamic Republic of Iran, and we categorically reject American intervention in the Islamic Republic,” the statement read, as delivered by a representative of the volunteers at a gathering in the Abu Sayda sub-district of Diyala.
The statement added: “We declare our readiness to defend the homeland and its holy sites without any compensation, and we will be under the command of the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces at any time,” while also rejecting what it described as “malicious rumors aimed at destabilizing the country’s security situation.”
The United States has recently threatened to launch military strikes against Iran if it continues to develop its nuclear program and fails to curb the activities of its regional proxies, including armed groups in Iraq, Lebanon, and Yemen.
“This gathering is not affiliated with any armed faction. Rather, we are volunteers ready to serve as a reserve force for the security forces,” Ammar al-Tamimi, a leader in the Badr Organization and organizer of the gathering, told Rudaw.
Tamimi explained that “this formation consists of 4,947 names, and its organizational structure, along with the names of each volunteer, will be submitted to the Diyala Operations Command, which will then forward them to the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces.”
“In the event of any emergency, we will be ready to support the security forces without receiving salaries and under fixed-term contracts until the crisis ends, so past mistakes are not repeated,” he added.
One volunteer present at the statement-reading ceremony said, “We came forward to defend our families and our people after sensing danger. We volunteered for the sake of God Almighty. We do not need money.”
Another volunteer said, “Our defense is for our homeland and our province. We offer our blood as a sacrifice for the nation.”
Meanwhile, Washington and Tehran held the first round of indirect talks on Friday in Muscat, Oman, under Omani mediation, focusing on Iran’s nuclear program. Iran’s delegation was led by Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, while the US side included President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner and US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff.
Trump described the talks as “good,” while Araghchi called them “a good start.” According to Trump, negotiations are expected to resume next week.
Friday’s talks marked the first diplomatic engagement since Washington launched strikes last June on key Iranian nuclear sites during the 12-day war initiated by Israel against Iran.