Baghdad emerges as intelligence hub amid rising Iran–US–Israel tensions

Baghdad has become a focal point for intelligence operations amid escalating hostilities between Iran on one side and the United States and Israel on the other, Asharq Al-Awsat reports.

Officers from the Quds Force have been deployed to conduct attrition operations and establish an alternative command centre for the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, anticipating potential unrest in Tehran.

In the days following the death of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, Iranian networks rapidly reorganized, shifting to a decentralized structure composed of hybrid cells operating through Iraqi formations. These networks have focused attacks on US facilities, surveillance assets, and communication systems. Meanwhile, Baghdad has become the site of an intensifying intelligence clash involving Iranian, American, and Iraqi actors, reaching a peak during an attack on the city’s intelligence directorate.

At the same time, the strategic site of Jurf al-Sakhar has shifted from a stronghold to a liability for security and intelligence purposes following targeted strikes on command and control centres. The operations exposed the nature of Iran’s presence in the area, disrupted its formations, and forced a reassessment of battlefield priorities amid heightened risks of exposure and personnel losses.

By Vafa Guliyeva