The law also regulates the establishment and licensing of Iraqi security firms, as suggested by the Interior Ministry and approved by the National Security Council. Foreign security companies are allowed to operate in cases of extreme need, as agreed to by the Cabinet upon the suggestion of the interior minister.
The law establishes a Directorate for Private Security Company Affairs, a new branch of the Interior Ministry, which will be responsible for registering and licensing companies.
Abdulaziz Hassan, a member of the Security and Defense Committee, told Al-Monitor, “The bill on weapons gives the Popular Mobilization Units [PMU] wide-ranging permission to carry and use weapons to fight terrorism. Once the war is over, the general command of the armed forces will be in charge of deciding whether its members keep their weapons or are disarmed.”
He said, “The security firms law puts those firms’ activities under state control, and they will not be able to begin work until they have received permission from the security and intelligence services. They will also be given orders in coordination with the commanders of government and police operations — previous experience has shown that some companies do not comply with the Iraqi law.”
He noted the weapons possession law would “disarm individuals and armed groups that are trying to impose their authority by force, as well as guarantee official units of the PMU a role in the future — even after [the Islamic State] is defeated — because it licenses them to keep their weapons in a totally legal way, as with the army and other security services.”
Passing laws to regulate security firms and the possession and use of weapons is an important step toward strengthening the rule of law and the state after a decade of deteriorating security in Iraq. It will help Iraqi citizens feel that both government and private security personnel are subject to the law, rather than above it, and that they are equal in rights and duties with every other citizen.
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