The Iraqi Army announced on 3 March a plan to build a military-fortified concrete wall along its long border with Syria.

“The Joint Border Command has made tremendous efforts, under the supervision of the Army’s Chief of Staff for two years to secure the borders, especially the western ones with Syria,” said Lieutenant General Qais al-Muhammadawi, the Deputy Chief of Staff of the Army for Operations.

Al-Muhammadawi said that the existing border fortifications provide the necessary security for Iraq.

“Security systems there are much better than before, in relation to administration, fortification, and monitoring, as well as in relation to drones, balloons and thermal cameras,” he  said.

The plan includes reinforcing the concrete wall with a barrier wall staffed by Iraqi Army units, and replacing the current patrol of Iraqi Border Guard forces which operate under the Ministry of Interior.

The border between Iraq and Syria is over 1,000 km long, creating a security challenge in preventing ISIS from infiltrating its borders.

Hundreds of militants from the terrorist group Daesh have been arrested during attempted border infiltrations.

On 29 January 2022, The Cradle reported on how the US transferred ISIS detainees, including high-ranking commanders, to Deir Ezzor which is close to the Iraqi border, in an attempt to ‘revive ISIS’ for the purposes of destabilizing a region in which the Syrian Army regained control.

The Cradle also reported on 7 August 2021 about similar US transferring of ISIS fighters in Syria and how a high-ranking officer from Iraq’s Popular Mobilization Units reported that their thermal cameras detected US military helicopters transferring ISIS terrorists to different locations around the country.

Such transfers jeopardize the efforts of Iraqi and Syrian authorities in achieving stability, security, and peace, especially along their shared border.

In March 2021, the Iraqi Ministry of Planning placed the poverty rate in Iraq at 24.8 percent.

Negotiations for establishing the next Iraqi government are underway as popular dissatisfaction with widespread government corruption continues.

The recent Iraqi election saw various political factions, including the Popular Mobilization Units, accusing the US and the Iraq High Electoral Commission (IHEC) of facilitating election fraud.