Iraq's Interior Ministry: Information Bank Created to Register 6 Million Weapons, 71 Fake PMF-Linked Offices Shut Down

Peregraf - Iraq's Ministry of Interior announced Monday the creation of a nationwide information bank containing records on six million weapons, while also revealing the closure of 71 fake offices falsely claiming affiliation with the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF).

Major General Miqdad Miri, head of the Ministry of Interior's Relations and Media Department, made the announcement during a press conference attended by a reporter.

Miri said the National Permanent Committee for Organizing Weapons was formed under National Security Council Resolution No. 21 of 2018 and began implementing a national weapons-control policy in January 2023. He said the committee's work is divided into four phases: building the database and information bank; registering citizens' weapons; enforcement and inspection; and achieving security and sustainable development. These phases are expected to conclude by 2030.

The committee operates under the patronage of the Prime Minister as Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, chaired by the Interior Ministry's undersecretary, with an executive team led by a representative of the Supreme Judicial Council alongside representatives from security agencies, civilian ministries, religious endowment departments, independent bodies, and the Iraqi Media Network. Miri said the committee's mission includes organizing weapons, preventing armed displays in public, achieving security and development, and protecting economic prosperity, adding that it holds a press conference every three months to review its work.

For the first time, the committee disclosed that its information bank now contains records of six million weapons across the country.

On its activities and statistics, Miri said the committee has shut down 71 fake offices claiming ties to the PMF, along with 119 weapons shops operating without valid licenses.

He said 160,759 licenses have been issued for weapons possession and carrying by citizens through the General Directorate for Civil Status, while 55,264 weapons held by civilian ministries have been transferred into Interior Ministry custody.

Miri added that the committee is tracking 143,309 stolen weapons, in addition to monitoring weapons held by 134 private security companies, seizing 21,224 pieces, and tracing 2,668 stolen weapons. He said more than half a million weapons have been submitted for registration by citizens.

The committee has also tracked 461 weapons held by former Sahwa fighters, recovered 947 weapons that had gone missing from the Interior Ministry and turned up with security companies, and traced 1,960 missing Interior Ministry weapons found with private firms. It has tracked 9,089 weapons seized across all security agencies, and monitored 277,278 weapons handed over to Iraqi authorities by the international coalition.

Miri said the committee's mandate extends beyond firearms to cover bladed weapons, fireworks, explosives, and hunting weapons. He noted that fireworks-related injuries reached around 324 cases in 2025. The Border Crossings Authority, a committee member, has seized 32,000 sound and hobby rifles, he said, while the committee has also been monitoring 53 tribal reconciliation weapons cases and seized 49 drones so far this year.

He stressed that any drone not operated under official, lawful conditions is treated by the judiciary as a terrorism case, meaning drone operators using them for non-peaceful or illegal purposes will be prosecuted under anti-terrorism law.

On the registration deadline, Miri said the current window—unless extended—runs until December 31, 2026, and urged citizens to register their weapons before it closes, warning that any unregistered weapon after that date will be treated as illegal, with legal measures taken against its holder.