US pushes Iraq to balance Iran as ISIS detainee transfers reshape strategy

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio spoke on Sunday with Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani about Baghdad’s decision to take custody of ISIL-linked detainees being moved from northeastern Syria to Iraq. Rubio “commended the Government of Iraq’s initiative and leadership in expediting the transfer and detention of ISIS terrorists,” according to a State Department release.

The transfers mark a major shift in Washington’s approach. The US military has already moved the first 150 detainees from a facility in Hasakah, Syria, to secure locations in Iraq, with plans to relocate up to 7,000 people as Syrian government forces reclaim territory once held by the US-backed Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF).

The change underscores growing realignments on the ground: the SDF, long the central US partner against ISIS, is ceding control under a ceasefire arrangement, while Damascus moves in to assume authority over key prisons and camps. Syrian government forces recently took control of the al-Hol camp and other detention facilities, raising international concern about security and humanitarian conditions.

Rubio used the call with al-Sudani to underline broader geopolitical stakes.

“Iraq can fully realise its potential as a force for stability, prosperity, and security in the Middle East,” he said, adding that “a government controlled by Iran cannot successfully put Iraq’s own interests first, keep Iraq out of regional conflicts or advance the mutually beneficial partnership between the United States and Iraq.”

His comments arrive as Iraq prepares for a possible return to leadership by Nouri al-Maliki, a figure once backed by the US but later seen as increasingly aligned with Iranian interests, a shift Washington views warily.

Iraq has confirmed it will prosecute IS militants being transferred from Syria under Iraqi law, and has appealed for other nations to repatriate their nationals held in detention facilities.

With input from news agencies