Iraq’s Kataeb Hezbollah tells fighters to prepare for long Iran-US war

By AFP 27 February 2026, 9:04 am

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Illustrative: Young men raise the flag of the Iran-backed Kataeb Hezbollah group during commemorations marking the second anniversary of the killing of top Iranian commander Qassem Soleimani and Iraqi paramilitary commander Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, in the southern Iraqi city of Basra, on January 8, 2022. (Hussein Faleh/AFP)

A powerful Iran-backed Iraqi armed group tells its fighters to prepare for the scenario of a long war in neighboring Iran should the United States launch strikes.

Kataeb Hezbollah warned the US yesterday of “immense losses” were it to start a war in the region, while a commander in an armed faction tells AFP his group is “highly likely” to intervene in case of strikes.

“Amid American threats and military build-up indicating a dangerous escalation in the region, it is necessary [for all fighters] to prepare for a potentially long war of attrition,” Kataeb Hezbollah says in a statement.

The commander tells AFP that his group sees Iran as strategic to its own interests, and therefore any attack on the Islamic Republic “directly threatens us.”

US-sanctioned Iraqi armed groups did not intervene during the 12-day war between Israel and Iran last year.

This time, the commander says they would be “less restrained,” especially in the event of strikes seeking to overthrow the regime.